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THB 


AUSTRALIAN  CRUSOES; 


OR, 


THE  ADVENTURES  OF 


5ln  (Pnglintj  Irttlrr  nnh  [lis  /iimili] 


WILDS   OF   AUSTRALIA, 

BY 

CHARLES    ROWCROFT,    ESQ., 

A    RESIDENT    MAGISTRATE, 


PROM  THE  SIXTH  LONDON  EDITION, 
maii  JllustrattonjJ. 


WILLIS  P.  HAZARD,  178  CHESTNUT  ST., 

1'  II  I  L  A  D  E  L  P  II  I  A : 
1  8  .'■)  .S . 


bterootyped  byStOTE  &  Mooney,  Philadelphia. 
Kite  &  Walton,  Printers. 


-p/?... 


P  r  t  f  a  r  r . 

It  is  with  the  view  of  describing  the  process  of 
settling  in  a  new  country ;  of  the  precautions  to  be 
taken  ;  of  the  foresight  to  be  exercised  ;  of  the 
early  difiSculties  to  be  overcome ;  and  of  the  sure 
reward  which  awaits  the  prudent  and  industrious 
colonist,  that  the  editor  has  collected  the  following 
tales  ;  and  he  may  add,  that  he  can  testify  to  the 
accuracy  of  the  descriptions  which  they  contain 
from  his  personal  experience  as  a  resident  magis- 
trate in  the  colony.  The  first  tale  which  is  pre- 
sented to  the  public  is  the  journal  of  a  settler, 
detailing  in  his  own  homely  language,  the  actual 
progress,  day  by  day,  from  the  beginning,  of  the 
establishment  of  a  colonist's  farm. 

(iii) 


LIFE   IN   AUSTRALIA. 


Cjiaptn  /irst. 


THE    SETTLER    S    JOURNAL. 

I  DO  not  pretend  to  be  philosopher  enough  to  analyze 
deeply  the  reasons  which  induce  me,  after  a  long  and 
active  life,  passed  for  the  most  part  in  laborious  but 
pleasurable  occupations,  to  lay  down  the  axe  for  the 
pen,  and  to  write  an  account  of  my  life  in  this  country. 
Perhaps  it  is  that  my  family  being  grown  up,  and  gently 
pushing,  as  the  young  do,  the  aged  from  their  stools,  by 
supplying  my  place  in  overseeing  my  farm,  the  leisure 
that  has  come  over  me  prompts  me  to  employ  my  mind, 
which  from  habit  is  disinclined  to  inaction,  in  recalling 
past  scenes  and  old  recollections.  Or  it  may  be  that,  at 
sixty-two  years,  the  garrulousness  of  old  age  inclines 
me  to  indulge  on  paper  in  the  talk  which  every  one 
around  me  seems  too  busy  to  attend  to  orally.  I  would 
fain  hope  that  I  am  actuated  by  a  better  reason  than 
any  such  as  these :  that  the  desire  to  present  a  useful 
history  of  a   settler's   life,  and  to  show  by  my  own 

(5) 


6  WhyI  Write. 

instance  how  much  may  be  accomplished  by  prudence, 
industry,  and  perseverance,  incites  me  to  write  this 
record  of  facts  and  feelings.  Whether  these  accounts 
may  ever  appear  in  print  I  do  not  know,  although  I  will 
confess  that  it  is  not  without  a  secret  inclination  that 
they  may,  in  some  shape,  find  their  way  to  the  perusal 
of  the  public,  that  I  now  proceed  to  arrange  them. 
Whether  they  appear  in  print  or  not,  I  have  at  least 
the  satisfaction  of  hoping,  that  when  I  shall  repose 
beneath  the  soil  of  this  beautiful  country,  which  I  have 
learned  to  love  so  dearly,  my  children's  children  after 
me  may  sometimes  turn  to  this  manuscript  of  the  old 
man's  recollections  not  without  advantage  from  its 
perusal. 


Cjinjitrr  IrtniiL 


Mr.  William  Thornley,  a  sort  of  ILalf-fanner  in  the  County  of  Sur- 
rey, finding  that  he  cannot  live  on  his  Small  Capital,  turns  liis 
thoughts  to  the  Colonies — Reasons  for  Emigration — A  Wife'a 
hearty  Consent  an  indispensable  Preliminary — Preparations — 
Voyage  to  Van  Diemen's  Land — Appearance  of  the  Country — 
He  has  an  Interview  with  the  Governor — Mode  of  obtaining  a 
Grant  of  Land. 

It  is  now  twenty-two  years  since  I  left  London  for 
Van  Diemen's  Land.  When  I  got  on  board  ship,  I 
remember  I  found  many  of  the  passengers  keeping 
journals,  so  I  did  the  same,  though  I  can't  say  I  found, 
at  first,  much  to  put  in  it ;  however,  the  habit  of  keep- 
ing a  journal  stuck  to  me  after  I  landed,  so  that  I  was 
never  easy  at  night  unless  I  wrote  down  what  had 
occurred  during  the  day.  I  am  glad  of  it  now,  as  I 
find  that  the  looking  back  on  what  I  have  gone  through 
is  useful  to  me,  and  makes  me  the  more  thankful  for 
what  I  have  got  now,  and  the  reading  of  it  will,  I  think, 
be  of  advantage  to  those  who  come  after  me;  so  I  will 
first  describe  how  it  was  that  I  came  to  emigrate,  and 
then  I  shall  copy  all  my  bits  and  scraps  of  journals 
fairly  out,  that  those  who  may  think  that  some  profit  is 
to  be  got  from  them  may  easily  read  them. 

It  was  in  the  beginning  of  the  year  1816  that  I  was 
first  in  difficulties  in  England ;  that  was  just  after  the 
close  of  the  long  war.  There  was  great  distress  in  the 
country ;  all  seemed  to  go  wrong.     So  many  lost  em- 

(7) 


8  Thoughts  of  Emigration. 

ployment  from  the  change  of  war  to  peace,  that  many 
were  starving,  and  there  was  great  confusion  and  riots. 
If  I  recollect  right,  it  was  the  year  when  the  ^'  Blank- 
eteers"  came  from  the  north  to  present  a  petition  to  the 
king.  I  had  carried  on,  for  many  years,  a  pretty  good 
business  at  Croydon,  in  the  corn  trade.  I  did  something 
with  coals  too,  the  canal  being  handy  (by-the-by,  that 
gave  me  the  idea  when  I  went  abroad  of  the  advantage 
of  water-carriage),  and  I  never  refused  any  sort  of  small 
trading  that  seemed  likely  to  turn  to  profit.  But  the 
corn  business  was  my  main  stay,  and  that  brought  me 
a  good  deal  into  communication  with  formers,  and  their 
way  of  farming  ;  but  I  found  that  farming  was  a  very 
difierent  thing  here  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  to  what  it 
was  in  Surrey.  I  remember,  as  if  it  was  yesterday,  that 
one  morning,  when  I  went  to  the  corn-market,  I  found 
a  cluster  of  farmers  and  others  standing  round  a  neigh- 
bour of  mine  reading  a  letter ;  it  was  from  a  son  of 
his — a  wild  sort  of  chap — who  had  gone  out  as  mate 
of  a  vessel  to  Sydney,  or  Botany  Bay,  as  it  was  called 
then.  By-the-by,  Botany  Bay  and  Sydney  are  quite 
different  places ;  Botany  Bay  lies  round  to  the  south 
of  Sydney,  and  there  is  no  town  at  all  there;  Sir 
Joseph  Banks  named  it  Botany  Bay  from  the  number 
of  new  plants  which  he  found  there,  but  the  town  of 
Sydney  was  fixed  thirteen  miles  further  to  the  north. 
Well,  the  reading  of  this  letter  caused  a  good  deal  of 
amusement,  speaking  of  the  kangaroos,  and  i\\Q  natives, 
and  the  bush-rangers ;  but  what  sui-prised  us  most  was 
to  hear  how  easily  the  young  fellow  had  turned  farmer ; 
for  farming  was  not  at  all  in  his  line,  as  he  had  scarcely 
looked  into  a  farm  in  his  life  when  he  was  in  England. 


The  Subject   Broached.  9 

The  accounts  contained  in  this  letter  of  the  beauty  of 
the  country,  of  the  fertility  of  the  soil,  and  of  the 
largeness  of  the  crops,  made  a  great  impression  on  nic, 
and  gave  rise  to  vague  ideas  and  designs,  which  dwelt 
in  my  mind,  and  set  mo  about  making  further  inquiries. 
However,  I  said  nothing  about  it  at  home  at  this  time, 
waiting  till  I  had  acquired  more  information,  but  went 
on  with  my  business  as  usual ;  but  my  business  did  not 
go  on  as  usual  with  me.  My  purpose  is  not  to  describe 
how  a  man  breaks  down  in  England,  but  how  he  gets  on 
in  the  colonies,  so  I  shall  say  no  more  of  my  losses  and 
difficulties  than  this  ;  that  with  one  failing  and  another 
failing,  and  people  crowding  into  the  trade  and  taking 
the  bread  out  of  one  another's  mouth,  and  altogether,  1 
found  that  it  would  not  do  any  longer.  So  one  evening, 
after  a  hard  day's  work,  and  no  profit,  but  all  loss,  I 
made  up  my  mind  to  put  an  end  to  it.  My  wife  was 
sitting  alone  in  the  parlour,  and  I  said  to  her  (for  I 
ought  to  have  said  before  that  I  had  boen  married  eleven 
years,  and  had  five  children),  "  Mary,"  said  I,  "  things 
are  going  on  very  badly." 

"  They'll  get  better  by-and-by,"  said  she. 

'*  They've  bocn  getting  worse  the  hist  six  months," 
said  I.     "  I  don't  like  the  look  of  it  at  all." 

"  We  must  work  the  harder,"  said  my  wife. 

Said  I,  '<  I  tell  you  what  it  is,  Mary,  I  work  as  hard 
as  any  man  can,  and  we  both  of  us  spend  as  little  as 
we  can,  but  we  are  eating  up  our  capital;  and  work  as 
I  may,  and  pinch  oui'selvca  as  we  may,  we  can't  go  on 
at  this  rate.  You  know  how  many  have  broke,  and 
there's  no  chance  of  our  money  from  them ;  in  three 
years  we  shall  have  nothing  left,  and  mnybe  we  should 


10  Where  To? 

break  down  before  then,  for  things  are  getting  worse 
and  worse,  and  the  trade  is  like  playing  at  hazard." 

"  Why,  William,"  said  Mary,  "  what  would  you  have 
us  do  ?     Shall  we  try  a  farm  ?" 

"  Not  in  this  country,"  said  I.  "  What  with  rent, 
and  rates,  and  taxes,  and  tithes,  with  corn  falling,  and 
all  things  unsettled,  I'm  thinking  farming  never  will 
be  the  business  it  used  to  be.  No,  Mary,"  said  I, 
speaking  to  her  with  much  earnestness,  "farming  won't 
answer  here ;  and  with  our  five  children  depending  on  us 
for  bread,  and  for  their  future  provision  in  life,  I  should 
not  like  to  risk  the  little  that  we  have  left  in  working  at 
a  farm  in  this  country.  We  must  make  up  our  minds 
to  a  great  effort,  and  since  there  are  too  many  struggling 
with  one  another  in  England,  we  must  go  where  the 
people  are  few,  and  the  land  is  plenty.  We  must  emi- 
grate." 

"Emigrate  !"  said  Mary;  "  where  to?" 

"  Why,"  I  replied,  "  perhaps  I  have  not  made  up 
my  mind  which  would  be  the  best  place  to  go  to,  nor 
indeed  could  I  make  up  my  mind  that  we  should  emi- 
grate at  all  until  I  had  consulted  with  you,  and  you  had 
agreed  to  it.  But  I  have  thought  of  the  matter  a  good 
deal,  and  the  more  I  think  of  it,  the  more  convinced  I 
am  that  it  would  be  better  for  us  to  take  care  of  what 
we  have  left,  and  turn  it  to  account  in  a  new  country. 
If  there  was  only  you  and  me,  we  could  make  a  shift, 
perhaps,  to  rub  on;  but  when  I  consider  our  children, 
who  are  growing  up,  and  how  to  provide  for  them  com- 
fortably I  know  no  more  than  the  dead,  I  do  feel  that 
to  be  sure  of  house  and  home,  and  bread  to  eat,  and 
clothes  to  wear  would  be  better  for  them  than  to  be 


TheDecision.  11 

exposed  to  all  the  chances  of  uncertain  trading  or  farm- 
ing in  this  country." 

Well,  I  saw  that  the  tears  had  come  in  Mary's  eyes 
at  this  talk,  and  her  heart  was  quite  full ;  for  the 
thought  of  her  mother,  now  advanced  in  years,  and  of 
her  relatives  and  acquaintances  about,  of  the  scenes  of 
her  early  childhood  and  the  companions  of  her  youth, 
all  to  be  quitted,  perhaps  for  ever,  was  too  much  for 
her ;  and  all  the  circumstances  of  our  own  losses  and 
diflSculties  crowding  in  upon  her  thoughts,  her  emotion 
got  the  better  of  her,  and  she  burst  into  tears,  and 
sobbed  for  some  time.  My  own  eyes  were  not  dry ; 
but  I  felt  that  in  these  cases  almost  all  depends  on  the 
firmness  of  the  head  of  the  family,  and  that  if  he  gives 
way,  all  gives  way  soon  after.  I  soothed  her  with  all 
the  kindness  of  an  affection  as  true  and  as  deep  as  ever 
man  had  for  woman ;  I  explained  to  her  exactly  our 
condition  and  all  our  circumstances,  and  after  a  long 
consultation,  her  good  sense  coming  to  her  aid,  and, 
most  of  all,  her  strong  affection  for  her  children  mas- 
tering all  other  considerations,  she  fell  in  with  my  views, 
and  it  was  agreed,  that  as  we  had  made  up  our  minds 
to  this  decisive  step,  the  sooner  we  carried  it  into  effect 
the  better. 

I  have  been  the  more  particular  in  narrating  this  con- 
versation, because  it  made,  as  may  easily  be  supposed,  a 
great  impression  on  me  as  it  related  to  one  of  the  most 
important  acts  of  my  life ;  and  from  the  circumstance 
also,  that  from  that  hour  my  dear  wife  never  made  a 
single  complaint,  nor  uttered  a  murmur  at  all  the  incon- 
veniences and  occasional  hardships  which  she  was  put 
to,  as  well  during  the  voyage  as  during  the  first  years 


12  Preparations  Begun. 

of  our  settling  in  the  colony.  This  deserves  the  more 
worthily  to  be  noted  as  I  have  been  a  witness,  in  Van 
Diemen's  Land,  of  the  evil  effects  of  a  contrary  course 
of  conduct  on  the  part  of  the  wives  of  emigrants.  To 
my  knowledge,  more  than  one  failure  has  happened  from 
the  fancies,  and  fine-lady  affectations,  and  frettings,  and 
sulkiness  of  settlers'  help-mates ;  forgetting  how  much 
of  a  man's  comfort  and  happiness,  and,  in  a  colony,  of 
his  success,  depends  on  the  cheerful  humour,  the  kindly 
good  temper,  and  the  hearty  co-operation  of  his  wife. 

Well,  the  great  point  being  settled,  that  of  my  wife's 
consent  and  hearty  concurrence  in  the  project,  all  the 
rest  went  on  rapidly  enough.  She  was  a  little  fright- 
ened at  first  at  all  there  was  before  her  to  do ;  but  she 
found  that  the  labours  and  difficulties  which,  viewed  in 
the  mass,  seemed  almost  insurmountable,  were  easily 
overcome  as  they  were  encountered  singly  :  and,  as  she 
said  at  the  time,  with  her  cheerful  smile,  "  that  if  we 
waited  until  we  had  provided  against  all  possible  and 
impossible  contingencies,  we  never  should  undertake  the 
expedition  at  all;  that  what  others  had  done,  we,  with 
prudence,  and  care,  and  energy,  might  do  also ;  and 
that,  putting  to  the  work  all  the  zeal  and  industry  that 
we  could  bring  to  it,  we  must  leave  the  rest  to  that  Pro- 
vidence which  never  deserts  the  willing  heart  and  the 
humble  mind." 

I  could  write  a  great  deal  about  all  our  hopes  and 
fears,  and  our  little  and  great  troubles;  but  I  am  anx- 
ious to  get  to  my  journal.  I  shall  not  give  a  long  ac- 
count of  our  voyage  by  sea,  of  the  sharks  that  we  saw, 
and  of  the  flying-fish  that  wc  broiled,  because  all  those 
things  have  been  described  over  and  over  again.     All 


OurCapital.  13 

sea-voyages  are  mucli  alike ;  there  must  be  some  dis- 
comfort ou  board  of  a  vessel,  where  you  cannot  have 
much  room  to  yourself,  and  the  passage  to  New  South 
Wales  is,  I  dare  say,  often  a  very  tedious  affair ;  but 
this  I  will  say,  that  every  thing  is  made  better  by 
good  temper,  and  by  a  cheerful  and  contented  mind.  I 
have  observed  through  life,  that  much  of  people's  hap- 
piness or  unhappiness  proceeds  from  the  way  in  which 
they  take  things.  Some  fret  and  grieve  everlastingly 
at  what  cannot  be  helped,  and  lose  the  enjoyment  of 
that  which  they  might  otherwise  derive  pleasure  from, 
because  they  cannot  have  everything  their  own  way; 
and  so  they  go  on,  miserable  themselves,  and  making 
everybody  else  miserable  around  them ;  while  others, 
making  up  their  minds  to  bear  the  annoyances  they 
can't  escape  from,  contrive  to  make  pleasures  out  of 
very  slight  materials,  and,  by  their  own  good-humour 
and  cheerfulness,  to  inspire  the  like  in  others.  But, 
before  I  begin  our  voyage,  it  will  be  well  to  state  what 
our  circumstances  were  on  leaving  England,  and  what 
we  took  out  with  us 

I  found,  after  scraping  together  all  I  could  get,  that 
I  could  just  manage  to  muster  up  £1150;  little  enough 
to  begin  the  world  anew  with,  and  with  a  wife,  five  chil- 
dren, and  my  wife's  mother,  to  convey  to  the  other  side 
of  the  globe.  It  ought  to  be  observed,  too,  that  my 
wife  had  been  well  educated,  and  had  always  lived  in  a 
lady-like  way ;  and  although  she  had  always  been  an 
industrious  housewife,  she  had  never  had  any  practice 
in  the  hard  work  which,  for  the  first  year  or  two,  falls 
on  the  settlor  in  a  new  colony.  Besides  this  £1150  in 
money,  we  had  our  beds  and  bedding,  and  blankets  and 


14  TheVoyage. 

linen,  and  such  household  articles,  in  plenty;  and  a 
variety  of  things  which  lie  about  a  house,  and  seem  of 
no  value,  we  took  out  with  us,  and  found  them  valuable, 
for  use  or  sale,  in  the  new  country.  As  to  the  bulk  of 
our  furniture,  we  sold  it  all,  as  I  was  told  that  it  would 
be  several  years  before  we  could  have  a  suitable  place 
to  put  it  in,  and  that  I  should  find  the  money  more 
useful;  that  I  must  rough  it  for  some  time,  and  think 
of  nothing  but  stock — that  is,  of  sheep  and  cattle. 
This  advice  was  very  good,  as  I  afterwards  found,  and 
I  was  as  happy,  for  many  months,  sitting  on  the  stump 
of  a  tree,  with  my  wife  opposite  me  on  another,  as  if  we 
had  reclined  on  the  softest  sofas  in  London.  But  there 
was  not  much  time  for  reclining,  as  will  be  seen  when  I 
come  to  my  journal.  I  took  care  to  carry  with  us  all 
the  usual  tools  imperatively  wanted  on  first  settling, 
such  as  saws,  axes,  chisels,  augurs,  &c.  I  had  the  good 
fortune  to  listen  to  the  advice  of  the  captain  of  a  ship, 
and  took  out  all  the  furnishing  of  a  blacksmith's  forge, 
which  I  found  of  the  greatest  use  to  me. 

Now  to  our  voyage,  which  I  shall  make  short  enough. 
We  set  sail  from  Gravesendonthe  7th  of  September,  1816. 
We  touched  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope ;  but  I  shall  not 
stop  to  describe  a  place  that  has  been  so  often  described 
before.  I  want  to  hasten  the  way  to  the  colony.  After 
a  passage  of  about  five  months,  wc  arrived  at  Hobart 
Town  on  the  3d  of  February,  1817.  Hobart  Town  is  the 
chief  town  or  capital  of  Van  Diemen's  Land,  at  the 
south  end  of  the  island.  The  new  ideas  which  the 
words  "  north"  and  "  south"  conveyed  in  those  parts 
confused  me  at  first;  for,  contrary  to  the  impression 
which  they  convey  in  Europe,  the  north  wind  on  the 


T  II  E     N  E  W    C  0  U  N  T  R  Y  .  15 

opposite  side  of  the  globe  is  the  warm  one,  and  the 
south  the  cold  one.  ''These  warm  north  winds"  and 
"  these  cold  south  gales"  sounded  oddly,  and  it  was 
some  time  before  I  got  used  to  the  expressions.  The 
aspect  of  the  new  country  was  not  encouraging,  and  I 
felt  a  little  damped  at  first.  All  the  country  up  the 
river,  from  Storm  Bay  Passage  to  Hobart  Town,  had  a 
mournful,  desolate  appearance.  The  trees  had  a  sombre 
look,  and  the  grass  was  a  dirty  brown,  excepting  here 
and  there  a  green  patch,  where  I  was  told  it  had  been 
recently  burnt.  It  looked  like  the  close  of  autumn 
instead  of  the  middle  of  summer,  which  it  was,  we  ar- 
riving, as  I  said  before,  on  the  3d  of  Febniary,  and  the 
months  of  winter  and  summer  being  reversed  here  in 
this  topsy-turvy  place.  A  brown  and  dusky  autumnal 
tint  seemed  to  pervade  all  nature,  and  the  place  had  a 
quiet,  sleepy  appearance,  as  if  everything  had  been 
standing  "still  and  was  waiting  for  settlers  to  come  and 
improve  it.  Mount  Wellington,  as  the  large  high  moun- 
tain, about  four  thousand  feet  high,  is  called,  at  the 
back  of  the  town  to  the  left  as  you  go  up  the  river,  had 
a  little  cap  of  snow  on  its  summit,  which  I  have  ob- 
served in  summer  several  times  since,  but  it  seldom  re- 
mains more  than  a  few  hours  at  that  season  of  the  year. 
The  town  had  a  straggling,  irregular  appearance;  a 
pretty  good  house  here  and  there,  and  the  intervening 
spaces  either  unbuilt  on  or  occupied  by  mean  little 
dwellings,  little  better  than  rude  huts.  It  is  to  be 
borne  in  mind  that  I  am  speaking  of  Hobart  Town  as  it 
was  twenty-two  years  ago ;  since  then,  great  changes 
have  taken  place,  as  will  be  found  noted  from  time  to 
time  in  my  journal.     One  thing  I  can't  help  adverting 


16  Kangaroo-Dogs. 

to,  and  that  is,  tlie  surprising  number  of  dogs  that  kept 
us  awake  for  some  nights  after  we  arrived  in  the  town 
with  their  incessant  barking.  At  that  time  every  one 
had  a  kangaroo-dog  who  could  contrive  to  keep  one, 
and  what  with  these  and  others,  first  one  set  up  a  growl, 
and  then  another  caught  it  vip,  and  he  was  of  course 
answered  from  another  part  of  the  town,  so  that  pres- 
ently hundreds  of  dogs,  watch-dogs,  kangaroo-dogs,  and 
mongrels  of  all  sorts  and  sizes,  all  would  set  up  such  a 
barking  and  tearing,  that  we  thought  to  be  sure  some- 
thing dreadful  must  be  the  matter ;  that  the  convicts 
liad  risen,  or  the  natives  had  fired  the  town.  We  wished 
that  all  the  dogs  had  their  tails  stufiied  down  their  throats, 
to  stop  their  noise.  But  we  soon  got  used  to  this,  like 
the  apprentice  that  was  lost,  and  found  asleep  in  the  cop- 
per that  the  workmen  were  hammering  at  outside ;  and 
afterwards  we  found  the  value  of  the  faithful  and  intel- 
ligent kangaroo-dogs  in  the  wild-bush ;  for  their  vigi- 
lance saved  us  all  from  being  murdered  by  the  natives, 
or  perhaps  burned  to  death,  as  I  shall  have  to  relate  in 
its  proper  place.  Well,  I  did  not  care,  at  this  time,  for 
the  statistics,  as  the  term  is,  of  the  town  or  the  colony ; 
I  was  too  much  taken  up  with  my  own  statistics,  and 
with  arranging  to  settle  ourselves  on  our  land,  and  get 
out  of  the  town,  for  we  soon  found  tliat  our  money 
would  melt  away  very  fast  if  we  staid  there,  and  no 
return  for  it,  everything  being  so  dear.  I  paid  35s. 
per  week  for  the  wretched  place  that  we  got  shelter  in : 
as  to  going  to  an  inn,  of  which  there  were  one  or  two 
indifferent  ones,  of  a  public-house  order,  that  would 
have  been  ruin  indeed.  Meat  was  9d.  and  10<f.  per  lb.; 
bread  a  little  cheaper  than  in  Tjondon ;  as  to  milk  and 
butter,  that  we  were  obliged  to  go  without. 


Strange   Feelings.  17 

Altogether,  I  did  not  like  the  looks  of  matters;  but  I 
was  assured  that  the  interior  of  the  country  was  more 
inviting,  and  I  was  advised  to  lose  no  time  in  getting 
on  my  laud,  for  it  had  been  observed,  that  more  than 
one  emigrant  who  had  lost  his  time  in  loitering  over  the 
town,  gaping  and  staring  about,  and  fretting  and  com- 
plaining because  all  things  did  not  come  easy  to  his  hand, 
had  soon  got  rid  of  so  much  of  his  money,  as  not  to 
have  enough  left  to  establish  himself,  and  carry  him 
through  the  first  year.  I  must  own  I  could  not  help 
feeling  strange  in  a  new  country,  where  everything  was 
so  different  from  what  one  had  been  used  to  at  home ; 
and  the  difficulty  of  getting  a  female  servant,  and  that 
a  convict  one,  to  help  my  wife  with  the  children  and 
the  house,  trifling  as  it  may  seem  to  speak  of,  troubled 
her  sadly.  I  felt  very  queer  myself  among  the  convicts ; 
some  with  yellow  jackets  on,  and  some  without,  but  all 
with  a  peculiar  look,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  with  here  and 
there  gangs  of  a  dozen  or  more  working  on  the  roads 
with  chains  on  their  legs,  and  making  the  place  look, 
as  I  must  confess,  not  very  respectable.  However,  I 
had  not  expected  to  find  plum-puddings  growing  on  the 
trees  ready  baked,  and  beds  of  rose-leaves  ready  spread 
to  lie  on,  as  some  did,  so  I  plucked  up  heart,  and  set  to 
work.  My  first  care  was  to  see  all  our  goods  and  chat- 
tels safely  landed  from  the  ship,  and  properly  housed 
in  a  store  belonging  to  a  merchant  in  the  town.  This  I 
had  to  pay  dear  enough  for.  I  was  rather  puzzled  to 
know  what  to  do  with  my  money,  in  a  land  of  convicts, 
where  every  finger  was  a  fish-hook  ;  but  the  governor 
allowed  mc  to  deposit  it  in  the  treasury.  As  it  was  all 
in  dollars,  the  weight  was  pretty  heavy,  more  than  I 
2 


18         Embarrassment  ofRiches. 

could  carry  by  myself;  and  I  said  jokingly  to  my  wife 
that  I  had  sometimes  read  of  the  embarrassment  of 
riches,  but  that  I  had  never  felt  it  before.  After  all 
expenses  of  outfit  and  passage  paid,  I  found  myself  in 
the  colony  with  3600  dollars  in  hand,  being  about 
£780  sterling,  having  purchased  the  dollars  in  London 
at  four  shillings  and  fourpence  a-piece.  With  this  sum 
I  had  to  set  about  establishing  myself  in  the  wilderness. 

I  had  now  to  turn  my  mind  to  the  fixing  on  a  place  to 
settle  on.  The  way  of  obtaining  land  was  very  different 
then  to  what  it  is  now,  and,  as  I  think,  the  alteration  has 
not  been  for  the  better.  The  mode  of  obtaining  land 
two-and-twenty  years  ago,  was  thus  : — 

Before  leaving  England,  I  aj)plied  to  the  oflace  of  the 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Home  Department,  by  letter, 
stating  my  intention  to  emigrate  to  Van  Diemen's  Land 
with  my  family,  and  requesting  an  authority  to  obtain  a 
grant  of  land  when  I  got  there.  In  reply  to  this,  I  re- 
ceived a  sealed  letter,  addressed  to  the  lieutenant-gover- 
nor, and  which,  I  was  informed  on  an  interview  with  the 
clerk  to  that  department  at  the  Home  Office,  contained 
the  necessary  authority.  This  letter,  I  afterwards  ascer- 
tained, was  an  authority  to  allot  to  me  a  grant  of  land 
according  to  my  means.  When  I  arrived  at  Hobart  Town, 
I  waited  on  the  governor  with  this  letter.  The  governor, 
whom  I  saw  himself,  and  who  was  very  kind  in  his  infor- 
mation and  advice,  made  a  note  of  my  circumstances,  of 
the  amount  of  my  property,  of  the  number  of  my  children 
and  family,  of  my  views  in  coming  to  the  colony,  and  he 
dwelt  much  on  the  bona  fide  nature  of  my  intentions  to 
go  on  the  land  and  work  it.  I  told  him  that  I  had  come 
with  the  intention  of  settling  as  a  farmer,  and  of  resid- 


Land   Granted   M  e.  19 

ing  on  my  land,  and  cultivating  it  myself.  At  this 
time,  in  the  year  1817,  this  class  of  settlers  was  always 
specially  favoured  by  the  colonial  government,  as  indeed 
it  was  right  and  politic  to  do,  for  it  was  precisely  the  class 
that  wt,8  wanted  in  the  colony  to  form  its  inhabitants  of 
the  interior,  to  raise  food  for  the  colony,  and  to  create  es- 
tablishments for  relieving  the  government  of  the  expense 
of  maintaining  the  convicts.  It  aided  the  plan,  also,  of 
reforming  the  convicts,  by  removing  them  from  the  temp- 
tations of  the  town,  and  of  habituating  them  to  healthy 
work  in  new  positions,  where  they  would  be  removed  from 
old  habits  and  associations.  Being  one  of  this  desirable 
class,  I  was  told  by  the  governor  that  he  considered  me 
entitled  to  as  large  a  grant  of  land  as  was  consistent  with 
his  general  instructions ;  and  that  he  should  allot  to  me 
twelve  hundred  acres.  Well,  I  thought,  this  was  a  good 
beginning.  Twelve  hundred  acres  of  land  of  one's  own 
has  a  good  sound,  and  is  a  pleasant  contemplation ;  but 
the  next  thing  was  where  to  find  them.  There  was  plenty 
of  land  unappropriated  in  the  colony,  but  very  much  of 
it  was  bad  land,  and  in  unfavourable  situations.  On  this 
point  the  governor  said  I  must  decide  for  myself;  "that 
there  was  much  bad  land  in  the  colony,  and  that  the  good 
land  near  the  town,  in  any  quantity  at  least,  was  nearly 
all  taken  up ;  but  that  if  I  thought  of  turning  my  at- 
tention particularly  to  the  breeding  of  sheep,  he  should 
advise  me  not  to  be  afraid  of  penetrating  into  the  inte- 
rior, for  that  he  judged,  from  his  communications  from 
England,  that  emigration  to  these  colonies  would  soon  so 
much  increase,  that  the  difficulty  of  stock-owners  would 
be  to  get  far  enough  ofi"  from  the  influx  of  new  set- 
tlers, so  as  to  find  sufficient  range  near  their  homesteads 


20  StarttoFindIt. 

for  the  feeding  of  their  flocks  and  herds."  And  so  I 
afterwards  found  it.  At  that  time,  when  land  was  granted, 
it  was  a  free  grant,  or  gift,  from  the  crown  to  the  emi- 
grant. This  acted  as  a  great  encouragement,  and  I  tliink 
the  various  plans  that  have  been  adopted  since,  although 
well  adapted  to  raise  the  value  of  the  laud  in  the  colony 
among  the  colonists,  have  had  the  effect  of  preventing 
many  persons  of  moderate  means,  but  of  practical  know- 
ledge, from  venturing  to  these  distant  regions. 

I  got  the  order  easily  enough,  as  I  have  said,  but  I 
found  I  had  difficulties  enough  to  contend  against,  and 
my  first  difficulty  in  respect  to  land  was  where  to  fix  on 
it ;  for  I  heard  so  many  contradictory  accounts  of  the  va- 
rious parts  of  the  country,  every  one  praising  his  own 
district,  as  fancy  or  interest  dictated,  that  I  was  fairly 
bewildered,  and  almost  at  my  wit's  end  which  way  to  turn 
my  steps.  But  as  the  choice  was  one  that  must  be  made, 
and  that  quickly  too,  I  set  heartily  about  it.  Leaving 
my  wife  and  children,  and  her  mother,  who,  though  old, 
had  the  excellent  quality  of  being  trustworthy,  as  com- 
fortable as  I  could  make  them  in  their  lodgings  in  the 
town,  and  having  arranged  with  a  resident  family  to  have 
an  eye  to  their  safety  in  my  absence,  I  put  my  gun  over 
my  shoulder,  and  started  up  the  country. 


Resolves  to  loae  no  time  in  getting  out  of  the  Town  and  on  to  his 
Farm — his  Journey  up  the  country  in  search  of  good  land — his 
talk  with  an  old  hand — he  meets  with  a  strange  person  and 
makes  a  new  acquaintance — mode  of  Farming  in  the  Colony — 
an  Adventure. 

HoBART  Town  was  quite  still  when  I  left  it  about  five 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  but  the  sun  was  getting  up  beau- 
tifully. There  were  only  one  or  two  stragglers  about. 
I  fancied  the  air  was  beginning  to  feel  warm  already, 
and  the  summer  sun  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  is  no  joke 
in  a  hayfield,  though  I  don't  remember  that  I  was  ever 
inconvenienced  by  it  more  than  in  England.  When  I  rose 
the  little  hill  going  out  of  the  town,  I  stopped  and  turned 
back  to  take  a  look  at  the  town  I  was  leaving.  I  cer- 
tainly was  much  struck  with  it.  It  looked  so  like  the 
BEGINNING  of  a  town,  there  could  be  no  mistake  about 
it.  It  was  all  interspersed  with  the  poles  and  scaffold- 
ing of  houses  being  built,  and  it  looked  almost  as  if  a  lot 
of  people  had  come  only  the  night  before,  and  had  begun 
to  set  up  a  city  to  dwell  in.  On  my  right  hand,  as  I 
stood  on  the  hill  looking  down  upon  the  town,  was  Mount 
Wellington,  with  thick,  white  fleecy  clouds  hanging  down 
from  its  top  and  concealing  its  head.  All  the  space  be- 
tween the  town  and  the  mountain  was  covered  with  trees 
and  shrubs,  having  for  the  most  part,  a  dusky  green  fo- 
liage     Nearly  fronting  me  stood  the  Government  house, 

(21) 


22  Lonely   Feelings. 

unfinished,  and  towards  the  left  was  the  broad  river  Der- 
went,  extending  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach  to  the 
south,  till  it  joined  the  sea.  Lying  at  anchor  close  in 
shore  were  two  merchant  vessels  and  a  few  boats.  It 
certainly  was  a  magnificent  sight :  the  noble  river ;  the 
fine  harbour,  allowing  ships  of  five  hundred  tons  burthen 
to  anchor  within  a  stone's  throw  of  the  end  of  the  jetty ; 
the  tiny  patches  of  cultivated  land  here  and  there,  which 
seemed  to  give  a  hint  of  the  treasures  unclaimed  around, 
and  requiring  only  tillage  to  reveal  them;  and,  above 
all,  the  air  of  sleeping  enterprise  which  the  quiet  town 
in  the  early  morning  seemed  to  be  invested  with,  formed 
together  a  remarkable  picture.  I  stood  looking  at  it  a 
good  while,  and  wondering  what  it  would  come  to,  when 
suddenly  the  bell  of  the  convicts'  barrack  yard  was  rung 
to  summon  the  government-men  to  work ;  and  it  served 
to  summon  me  too,  for  I  fancy  that  without  being  aware 
of  it,  I  was  a  little  loth  to  leave  human  habitations  and 
plunge  into  the  bush  among  the  natives.  However,  I 
was  on  a  high  road  as  yet,  though  not  a  very  good  one, 
so  after  giving  a  little  look  at  the  spot  where  I  knew  my 
wife  and  children  were  dwelling,  I  cast  a  glance  at  the 
priming  of  my  fowling-piece  and  marched  on. 

I  met  nothing  between  camp,  as  Hobart  Town  was  then 
called,  and  New  Town,  about  three  miles.  I  remember  I 
felt  very  lonely ;  I  had  not  warmed  into  the  work,  and  I 
felt  all  the  hesitation  which  a  man  feels  when  he  sets  out 
to  take  a  journey  without  having  first  determined  where 
he  intends  to  go.  I  was  in  fact  a  seeking  where  to  go, 
and  looking  out  for  some  information  to  guide  me  as  to 
the  point  whither  to  direct  my  steps,  with  the  impression 
on  my  mind,  from  my  experience  in  the  town,  that  every 


Which  Way?  23 

one  would  endeavour  to  deceive  me  as  to  what  land  was 
vacant,  and  which  was  the  best  part  to  settle  on.  With 
all  these  anxious  thoughts  I  continued  my  way,  passing 
one  or  two  miserable  looking  cabins  bj'  the  road,  till  T 
reached  the  ferry  on  the  right,  about  ten  miles  from  camp. 
Here  the  river  is  still  broad;  about  as  broad  as  the  Thames 
at  Chelsea.  At  this  place  I  made  a  halt,  in  order  to  de- 
cide whether  I  should  continue  my  road  to  New  Norfolk, 
about  twenty-one  miles  from  the  camp,  or  cross  over  and 
take  the  high  road,  such  as  it  was,  leading  from  the  one 
side  of  the  island  to  the  other,  that  is,  to  Launecston,  on 
the  banks  of  the  river  Tamar.  I  walked  down  to  the  edge 
of  the  water  and  talked  to  the  ferry-men  who  were  busy 
about  their  boat.  They  all  advised  me  to  go  on  to  New 
Norfolk,  where  there  was  plenty  of  fine  land,  as  they  said, 
and  a  settled  district.  The  master  of  the  ferry,  and  of  the 
inn  belonging  to  it  hard  by,  came  up,  and  I  asked  him 
what  he  thought.  He  looked  at  me  a  bit  as  if  to  mea- 
sure what  I  was  worth,  and  shook  his  head  in  a  very  wise 
manner : 

"  You're  a  new  settler  ?"  said  he. 

"Yes,"  said  I,  "very  new;  and  should  feel  much 
obliged  if  any  one  would  direct  me  a  little  which  way  I 
had  better  go  to  look  for  land." 

"  Much  land?"  said  he. 

"  Twelve  hundred  acres." 

"  Not  much  for  a  sheep- farm,  but  enough  to  make  a 
tidy  homestead." 

"  I  think  it  is ;  but  where  can  T  find  a  good  bit  of  land  ?" 

"Breakfasted?"  said  the  landlord. 

"Before  I  set  out." 

"  Oh  !— Well,  T  tell  you  what  I  :^lir.uld  do  if  T  was  you ; 


24  The    Landlord's  Cheer. 

yoTi  had  better  take  up  your  quarters  with  me  for  a  day 
or  two,  and  then  I'll  see  what  can  be  done." 

"  And  then  ?"  said  I. 

"  And  then  you  can  cross  the  ferry,  and — " 

"  Thank  ye,"  says  I;  for  I  saw  which  way  the  wind  was 
blowing;  the  ferry-men  would  have  me  go  to  New  Nor- 
folk to  save  themselves  the  trouble  of  pulling  me  over  for 
their  master,  and  their  master  would  have  me  spend  ray 
money  at  his  inn,  and  I  doubt  not  advised  every  one,  as 
he  advised  me,  to  cross  his  ferry,  whether  or  no.  So, 
thought  I,  I  see  I  must  depend  on  myself;  now  if  New 
Norfolk  is  already  settled,  that  argues  that  it  was  con- 
sidered a  good  place  to  settle  in  when  there  was  plenty 
of  good  land  to  pick  and  choose,  so  I'll  go  and  see  what 
the  place  is  made  of. 

"  Good  morning,"  said  I  to  the  landlord,  who  was 
standing  looking  at  me,  and  his  ferry-men  looking  at  him  ; 
"  I  shall  see  what  sort  of  land  they  have  at  New  Norfolk." 

"You  had  better  wait  till  evening,"  said  the  landlord, 
"you'll  find  it  precious  warm." 

"  I  don't  like  to  lose  time." 

"  Take  a  glass  of  rum  ?" 

"  No,  thank  you,  I  never  drink  it."  (The  ferry-men 
grinned.) 

"  Or  a  glass  of  brandy  ?" 

"  No — much  obliged." 

"  I've  got  some  whiskey,  real  farantosh —  :  or  Irish, 
with  the  true  smack  of  the  turf  in  it?     Or " 

"  Thank  you,  I  never  drink  spirits  in  the  morning,  but 
I  should  like  to  have  a  drop  of  beer.  Although  its  early, 
I've  had  a  longish  walk — and  a  little  mild  ale.  .  .  ." 


Rum  OR  Water?  25 

"  Beer ! — mild  ale  ! — Lord  love  ye,  why  you  haven't 
come  out  here  to  drink  beer  and  mild  ale,  have  you  ? 
You'll  find  no  beer  up  the  country.  Rum's  the  stuif ; 
that's  our  drink  in  this  colony." 

'*  Why,  you  have  water,  I  suppose  ?" 

"  Water  ?  Water !  Oh !  yes  to  be  sure  we  have  water ; 
we  always  use  it  for  tea;  and  I  can  tell  you,  a  cup  of  tea, 
with  a  glass  of  rum  in  it,  is  very  refreshing." 

"  I  had  rather  have  a  drop  of  milk  in  my  tea,"  said  I. 

"  AVhy,  maybe  some  would ;  but  you  see  use  is  every 
thing,  and  it  isn't  so  easy  to  get  milk  in  these  parts,  so 
that  rum  is  mother's  milk  to  us  now.  Ha !  ha  !  you'll  get 
used  to  a  settler's  life  by-and-by,  rum  and  all." 

"  Well,  "said  I,  "  barring  the  rum,  I  hope  I  soon  shall ;" 
and  so  I  took  my  leave,  not  overpleased  with  the  conver- 
sation nor  with  the  landlord  of  the  Ferry.  However,  it 
was  his  business  to  make  people  spend  money  at  his  inn, 
and  cross  his  ferry,  and  we  are  all  somewhat  selfish,  I 
take  it,  in  our  own  vocations. 

The  sun  began  now  to  be  pretty  warmish,  and  my 
watch  told  me  it  was  ten  o'clock.  Thought  I,  if  it  is 
warm  at  ten,  I  shall  be  melted  at  mid-day ;  but  to  New 
Norfolk  I  must  go ;  so  I  put  my  best  foot  foremost,  and 
strode  away  manfully.  In  about  an  hour's  time,  however, 
the  sun's  rays  became  so  powerful  that,  not  3'ot  having 
recovered  my  habits  of  walking,  I  began  to  give  way ; 
and  I  looked  to  the  right  and  left  for  a  likely  place  to  rest 
in.  As  I  cast  my  eyes  about,  I  spied  a  rough  looking 
man  seated  on  the  ground  at  a  little  distance  from  the 
road,  near  a  little  rocky  mount,  drinking  water  from  a 
spring  which  oozed  over  the  shelf  of  a  little  platform  of 
stone.     Thought  T,  this  is  not  one  of  your  rum  drinkers, 


20  Makes  an  Acquaintance. 

as  he  is  soaking  in  the  pure  element  with  such  gusto ;  but 
he's  a  queer  looking  chap  too.  It  was  the  first  of  the 
species  that  I  had  occasion  closely  to  observe,  so  I  may 
as  well  describe  him. 

His  feet  were  enyeloped  in  a  pair  of  old  moccasins  made 
out  of  a  sheep's  skin,  with  the  wool  outside,  but  much 
worn,  it  seemed,  with  travel.    His  legs  were  bare.    A  pair 
of  very  old  knee-breeches,  which  once  had  buttons  and 
strings,  but  whith  now  had   none,  encased  his  nether 
person.     The  principal  part  of  his  dress  was  a  frock-coat 
of  kangaroo-skin,  or  rather  of  many  skins,  dried  with  the 
hair  on,  and  presenting  a  curious  variety  of  shade  from 
wear  and  dirt.     On  his  head  he  wore  a  hat,  if  hat  it  could 
be  called,  which  once  seemingly  was  black,  but  now  was 
of  no  particular  colour,  the  crown  whereof  was  ingeniously 
fastened  to  the  body  with  the  fibres  of  the  stringy  bark 
tree,  albeit  that  it  permitted  to  peep  forth  the  ragged  ends 
of  some  dry  native  grass,  which  its  owner  had  thrust 
within  it  (seeing  that  it  was  too  large,  not  having  been 
originally  made  for  him),  to  maintain  it  in  a  becoming 
and  convenient  position.    A  grizzly  beard  of  a  fortnight's 
growth,  gave  a  finish  to  his  ferocious  appearance.    I  sur- 
veyed this  hairy  individual  with  much  curiosity,  as  I  ad- 
vanced towards  him,  and  with  snme  mistrust,  for  there 
were  bush-rangers  abroad,  and  although  this  was  not  a 
likely  place  to  meet  with  them,  I  was  strange  to  the 
country,  and  thought  it  best  to  be  on  my  guard.    I  kept 
iny  hand  therefore  convenient  to  the  lock  of  my  piece, 
with  the  muzzle  before  me,  careless  like,  but  quite  ready. 
jMy  precaution,  however,  did  not  escape  the  observation  of 
the  kangaroo  man,  who  now  turning  his  face  to  me  and 
looking  up,  said  in  a  country -like  tone : 


Rather  a  Queer   Figure.  27 

"  You  needn't  be  afeeard  o'rae,  Master.  If  you  want 
water,  come  and  drink.  Thank  God,  there  is  water  in 
the  country,  plenty  and  sweet  enough — except  where  it's 
brackish.  Drink,  (seeing  that  I  hesitated)  well — I'll 
go  farther  off;  no  wonder  perhaps  you're  timid  a  bit. — 
If  you'd  a  gone  through  what  I've  gone  through  in  this 
wretched  country,  you'd  have  reason  enough  for  it." 

There  was  something  about  the  man's  manner  and 
about  his  face  too,  though  the  sourest  looking  I  ever 
saw,  that  made  me  feel  there  was  no  harm  in  him,  so 
I  stooped  down  and  had  the  most  delicious  draught  I 
think  I  ever  tasted.  I  bad  learnt  the  value  of  water 
by  my  long  voyage  from  England,  but  I  think  I  never, 
even  as  a  schoolboy,  enjoyed  a  drink  of  water  so  much 
before.  This  mutual  draught  from  the  same  fountain 
established  at  once  a  sort  of  companionship  between  me 
and  the  man  of  skins,  and  we  sat  down  together  by  the 
side  of  the  spring. 

I  could  not  help  gazing  at  my  new  acquaintance  with 
a  sort  of  wonder,  and  thinking  in  my  own  mind  that  he 
formed  a  queer  figure  in  the  foreground  of  the  arcadian 
scenery  of  the  new  country. 

"  You  look  at  me." 

"I  can't  help  it,"  said  I :  ''I  don't  mean  any  offence, 
but  pray,  do  all  the  people  in  this  country  dress  in  your 
style  ?  I  don't  mean  to  say  that  it  is  not  a  very  proper 
dress,  and  (fearing  to  anger  him)  very  becoming  and 
suitable  to  the  conntry  ;  but  I  only  arrived  a  fortnight 
since,  and  everything  seems  strange  to  me." 

"  Not  stranger  than  it  does  to  me,"  said  the  man. 
''  How  do  you  think  I  came  by  this  dress,  as  you  call 
it  ?  Well— you  needn't  guess  ;  I'll  tell  you,  I'm  dressed 
by  voluntary  contribution." 


28  Dressed  by  Bushmen! 

"  Voluntary  contribution  !     How's  tliat  ?" 

"  Why,  you  see,  about  ten  days  ago,  I  was  met  by 
the  bush-rangers  on  the  other  side  of  the  island,  and 
they  stripped  me  of  everything." 

"  They  did  ?"  said  I,  and  I  clapped  my  hand  on  my 
gun. 

"  Oh — you  needn't  be  afeeard — there's  none  on  'em 
here,  and  I  hope  you  won't  meet  any  in  this  horrible 
country.  Lord  forgive  me — I  wish  I  was  well  out  of  it. 
Fool  that  I  was  to  leave  my  old  master  in  Shropshire  to 
come  out  here  to  get  laud  of  my  own.  Ah — well — go 
farther  and  fare  worse.  These  rascals,  these  bushraneex'S, 
took  every  individual  thing  I  had  about  me,  and  kept 
me  for  three  days  to  carry  their  baggage  for  them.  The 
one  that  took  my  coat,  and  a  prime  velveteen  one  it  was, 
with  plenty  of  pockets,  chucked  his  kangaroo-skin  jacket 
to  me ;  '  here,  my  hearty,'  says  he,  *  is  something  to 
remember  us  by.  You  can't  say  we  haven't  treated  you 
well,  for  you  have  shared  of  the  best  with  us,  and  we 
have  shown  you  all  the  country.'  These  moccasins  I 
got  at  a  stock-keeper's  hut,  who  let  me  fit  the  sheep  skin 
warm  to  my  feet,  and  they  were  comfortable  enough  at 
first,  but  now  they  are  dry,  they  get  unpleasant.  But 
it's  not  long  that  I'll  wear  'em,  for  I'll  go  back  home 
again  to  England,  if  I  have  to  work  my  passage.  Hea- 
ven send  that  I  was  out  of  this  horrible  place !  I  do 
really  think  it  was  made  before  the  other  countries  were 
begun,  and  found  not  to  answer.  There  is  nothing  in 
it  like  any  tiling  anywhere  else,  and  what's  worse,  there's 
nothing  in  it  to  eat." 

"Nothing  to  cat!  that's  a  bad  job;  bow  do  people 
subsist  then  ?" 


Mr.   Crab's  Opinion.  29 

"Oh!  I  don't  mean  there's  nothing  to  eat  osactiy; 
though  I  don't  know  what  one  can  get  all  over  the 
country  but  mutton  chops  and  dampers ;  but  I  mean 
that  the  country  furnishes  nothing  of  itself:  no  ani- 
mals, no  fruits,  no  roots.  Now  I  thought  before  I  came 
here,  there  must  be  plenty  of  fruit  in  a  warm  climate ; 
but,  bless  your  heart,  you  may  look  a  long  time  in  the 
woods  for  anything  to  eat,  I  can  tell  you.  The  only 
thing  like  a  fruit  that  I've  ever  seen,  is  a  cherry  wrong 
made,  with  the  stone  growing  outside.  I  did  eat  a  lot 
of  them  one  day  when  I  was  hard  run,  as  I  observed 
the  birds  eat  'em,  and  a  pretty  murmuring  they  pro- 
duced in  my  inside ;  but  that's  neither  here  nor  there. 
What  I  say  is  this :  this  is  the  worst  country,  and  the 
most  dreadful  place  that  man  ever  was  in,  and  all  I  wish 
is  that  I  was  out  of  it." 

"  I  am  sorry,"  said  I,  "  to  hear  you  give  so  bad  an 

opinion  of  the  country  I  have  come  to  settle  in,  Mr. ; 

you  have  not  told  me  your  name." 

"Crab — Samuel  Crab;  that's  my  name,  and  that  wa.s 
my  father's  name.  You  see  I'm  a  Shropshire  man,  and 
for  five-and-thirty  years  I  was  head  ploughman  to  Squire 
Dumpier,  at  Dampier  Hall.  A  good  master  he  wa.s  to 
me,  and  a  fool  was  I  for  leaving  him;  but  it  all  came 
from  reading  and  writing." 

"  From  reading  and  writing  I — how  was  that  ?" 

"  Why  you  see,  one  day  I  was  at  the  blacksmith's 
about  a  plough,  and  as  I  had  nothing  to  do,  I  took  up  a 
newspaper  that  was  there  (od  rot  the  writers  on  'em),  and 
began  reading  about  the  Colony  of  Van  Dieracn's  Land, 
of  all  places  in  the  world,  what  capital  land  was  there, 
and  what  high  wages  were  to  be  got,,  and  how  mucli 
farming  men  wore  wanted,  and  particularly  ploughmen, 


30  Rather  Disheartening. 

and  how  you  were  sm-e  to  make  your  fortune  there  quite 
out  of  hand  like.  Well,  if  ever  I  longed  for  anything  iu 
my  life,  it  was  to  have  a  bit  of  land  of  my  own,  but  I 
never  could  get  hold  of  it  any  how,  nor  saw  any  likelihood 
of  it.  So,  in  short,  I  was  seized  with  a  sort  of  fit  to  go 
to  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and  go  I  would,  spite  of  what 
master  could  say.  I  had  saved  a  matter  o'  'bout  a  hun- 
dred and  fifty  pound;  and  so  go  I  did,  and  now  I'll  go 
back  again." 

I  was  a  little  damped  to  hear  this  talk  from  a  real 
farming  man,  and  one,  too,  who  had  seen  a  good  deal  of 
the  country,  and  I  began  to  have  misgivings  of  the  pru- 
dence of  what  I  had  done  in  leaving  a  rich  and  settled 
country  like  England,  for  a  new  and  wild  region,  such  ag 
Van  Diemen's  Land.  My  new  acquaintance  seemed  rather 
of  a  dull  and  obstinate  nature,  like  most  farming  men  iu 
the  middle  counties  of  England,  and  was  likely  enough 
to  be  prejudiced  against  the  country  after  the  mauling 
the  bush-rangers  had  given  him ;  but  still  I  thought  he 
could  tell  me  what  he  had  seen,  so  as  he  seemed  inclined 
to  talk,  I  went  on  to  question  him  for  the  sake  of  infor- 
mation. 

''What  system  of  farming,"  said  I,  "do  they  follow 
most  in  this  country  ?" 

"  System  ?  Bless  you,  you  don't  suppose  they  follow 
any  system  here  ?  The  way  they  go  on  is  quite  disgusting 
to  me ;  they  know  no  more  of  farming  than  a  Londoner. 
They  don't  know  how  to  grow  anything." 

"No  wheat?" 

"  Yes,  they  do  grow  wheat — such  as  it  is." 

"  Barley  ?" 

"Yes:  barley." 

"Oats?" 


How  THEY  Farm  Here.  81' 

"Not  seen  much  oats;  however,  I  believe  they  can 
grow." 

''Potatoes?" 

"  Oh — plenty  of  potatoes." 

"  Vegetables?  cabbages,  peas,  beans,  and  such  ILke?" 

"  Yes  :  I  can't  say  but  tLcy  can  grow  'em  ;  but  they're 
too  large  to  please  me,  and  I'm  sure  they  grow  too  quick ; 
besides,  it  stands  to  reason  that  things  can't  grow  properly 
with  the  soil  just  disturbed,  as  it's  done  here.  A  man  in 
my  country  would  be  ashamed  to  call  it  digging.  _  And 
then  to  see  what  they  call  a  field  of  wheat !  I  call  it  a 
field  of  stumps  !  And  where  there's  no  stumps  they  don't 
do  much  better.  They  just  put  the  plough  once  through 
it,  and  there  lies  the  sod  turned  up  with  the  grass  growing 
on  it ;  and  then  a  weaver  chap,  or  a  London  pickpocket, 
comes  with  the  seed  in  a  bag,  and  oh,  my  eyes,  how  I 
laughed !  he  flings  it  about  as  if  he  was  feeding  the 
chickens;  and  then  another  chap  comes  with  a  large 
branch  of  a  tree,  drawn  by  a  couple  of  oxen,  and  he 
sweeps  the  grain  about,  and  that  they  call  harrowing  !  and 
when  that's  done  they  just  leave  it." 

"  And  what  becomes  of  it  ?" 

"  Oh,  first  the  cockatoos  get  a  good  bellyfull,  and  then 
the  parrots  and  magpies  have  a  peck  at  it.  But  it  comes 
up  at  last." 

"  Well,  that's  something." 

"  Yes — maybe — but  it  ought'nt  to  come  up  done  in 
that  slovenly  way.  It's  a  shame  to  waste  good  seed  so. 
And  then  when  they  do  get  a  bit  of  land  a  little — no 
not  in  order — but  out  of  disorder,  how  they  do  work  it, 
dear  me !  What  do  you  think  a  sort  of  cockney  chap 
said  to  me  at  Pitt-water,  for  I've  been  over  there  ?    Saya 


S2  I  Understand  Mr.   Crab. 

[  to  him,  '  Friend,'  says  I,  *  how  often  do  you  let  your 
land  lie  fallow  in  these  parts  V  '  Fallow,'  says  he, 
'  what's  that  V  '  You're  a  pretty  chap  to  be  a  farmer,' 
said  I,  '  not  to  know  what  lying  fallow  means.  Why 
lying  fallow  means  letting  the  land  rest  a  bit  to  recover 
itself  for  another  crop.'  '  Oh,'  said  he,  '  our  land  in 
this  place  never  lies  'fallow,'  as  you  call  it;  we  just 
put  the  same  crop  in  every  year.  There — that  field  lias 
grown  wheat  for  eleven  years.'  'What,  have  you  had 
the  cruelty,'  said  I,  '  to  put  wheat  on  that  bit  of  land 
for  eleven  years  V  '  To  be  sure  I  have,'  said  he,  '  and 
shall  grow  wheat  on  it  for  eleven  years  longer,  if  I  live.' 
Master,  you  might  have  knocked  me  down  with  a 
feather :  I  never  before  heard  anything  so  horrid.  I 
felt  sure  at  once,  that  no  good  was  to  be  done  in  a  coun- 
try where  creatures  harrow  with  branches  of  trees,  and 
treat  their  land  so  cruelly.  But  it  was  worse  than  that 
when  I  came  to  look  more  into  it.  I  know  you  won't 
believe  it;  they'll  never  believe  it  of  me  when  I  get 
back  to  Shropshire.  This  very  bit  of  land,  that  I've 
told  you  of,  that  the  creature  grew  corn  on  for  eleven 
years  without  stopping,  never  had — no — not  so  much  as 
a  handful  of  manure  the  whole  eleven  years.  What  do 
you  think  of  that?  Would  any  Christian  farmer  in 
England  treat  his  land  so  ?  Why,  it's  against  nature  !" 
I  now  began  to  understand  the  sort  of  man  I  had 
to  deal  with ;  one  of  those  obstinate  sons  of  the  soil 
who  cannot  be  made  to  understand  that  it  is  possible  to 
carry  on  farming  in  any  other  way  than  the  way  which 
they  have  been  accustomed  to;  and  whose  prejudices 
against  innovation  are  so  strong,  that  they  will  not 
believe  in  the  truth  of  what  they  see  with  their  own 


Mr.   Crab's  Glass  of  Beer.       33 

eyes,  and  wring  everything  from  its  true  bearing  to  the 
backing  up  of  their  own  notions.  Kow  that  I  felt  at 
ease  with  my  new  friend,  T  began  to  be  amused  with  his 
oddity  and  obstinacy,  and  I  thought,  perhaps,  as  he  had 
had  some  experience  in  the  colony,  and  knew  the  coun- 
try, he  would  be  a  useful  companion  to  mc,  though  not 
very  prepossessing  in  his  personal  appearance. 

"  Well,  Mr.  Crab,"  said  I,  "  what  do  you  mean  to 
do  now  ?" 

"  Oh,  I  shall  make  the  best  of  my  way  on  board-ship, 
and  get  out  of  this  miserable  country  as  fast  as  I  can." 

"  But  to  my  certain  knowledge  no  ship  will  sail  for  six 
weeks ;  what  would  you  do  in  the  town  all  that  time  ?" 

"  Ah — there's  another  horrid  thing  against  the  coun- 
try ;  when  a  poor  man  has  been  enticed  over  by  all  the 
lies  of  the  captains,  and  ship-owners,  and  book-writers, 
here  he  must  stay  till  some  captain  gets  as  sick  of  the 
country  as  he.  What's  to  become  of  me  for  six  weeks, 
I'm  sure  I  don't  know  !  To  live  in  that  wretched  town 
is  horrible,  where  all  the  people  are  convicts,  or  worse 
than  convicts,  with  their  wickedness  and  extortions. 
Only  once  did  I  go  into  a  public-house  while  I  was 
there." 

"  And  how  did  you  fare  there  ?" 

"Oh  !  I'll  tell  you:  'Glass  of  beer?'  said  I.  No- 
thing under  a  bottle,'  said  the  landlord.  '  How  much 
does  your  bottle  hold  ?"  said  I ;  for  I  knew  it  was 
necessary  to  be  cautious  in  dealing  with  these  town 
chaps.  '  Just  the  same  as  in  England,'  said  he,  show- 
ing a  bottle  with  Barclay's  bottled  stout  marked  on  the 
label.  It's  true — fny  heart  did  warm  to  the  beer,  and 
quite  forgetting  to  ask  the  price,  I  said,  with  a  sort  of  , 
8 


34  What  HE  Pays  FOR  it! 

glee,  '  Out  with  the  cork.'  It  was  out  in  a  twinkling; 
that  drink  was  a  prime  one,  I  must  say,  if  I  never  have 
another.  '  Take  a  glass  yourself,  landlord/  said  I. 
'  With  pleasui'e,'  said  he,  and  filling  it  slowly  to  the 
brim,  '  Your  very  good  health,'  said  he  to  me.  *  The 
same  to  you,'  said  I,  filling  another.  He  filled  his  at 
the  same  time,  without  waiting  to  be  invited.  '  How 
do  you  like  it  V  said  he.  '  Never  drunk  better  in  my 
life,' said  I.  '  What's  to  pay  ?'  '  Half-a-guinea,'  said 
he.  *  Half-a-guinea,'  said  I,  '  for  a  bottle  of  beer  !' 
'  Yes,'  said  he,  '  and  cheap  too  ;  there's  only  two  dozen 
left  in  the  colony,  and  you've  just  drunk  one  of  them.' 
The  beer  seemed  to  move  in  my  stomach  at  this  charge, 
as  if  it  had  got  down  there  by  mistake  and  wanted  to 
come  up  again.  I  said  nothing;  I  could'nt  speak;  I 
felt  I  was  done.  Had  I  paid  the  money  in  their  paper 
shillings  and  sixpences  it  might  have  taken  ofi"  the  edge 
of  the  mishap  a  bit.  But  I  laid  down  two  silver  dollars. 
The  landlord  took  'em  up.  '  Another  sixpence,'  said  he. 
I  pulled  out  another  silver  dollar,  he  gave  me  some  bits 
of  dirty  paper  for  the  four-and-sixpence  change,  and  I 
made  a  vow  that  if  ever  I  had  the  opportunity  I'd  sarve 
him  out  for  it.  But  that's  nothing  to  what  I've  suflfered 
in  this  abominable  country,  which  is  fit  for  nothing  but 
convicts  and  kangaroos  to  live  in." 

"  Seeing  how  ill  you've  been  treated  in  the  town," 
said  I,  "■  and  it  seems  that  the  bush-rangers  have  not 
treated  you  much  better  in  the  country,  I  hardly  know 
what  to  say  to  you.  I'm  going  up  the  country  to  look 
for  land,  but  sadly  in  want  of  some  intelligent  person 
to  advise  me  how  to  proceed.  It  is  difficult  to  get  sin- 
cere information,  I  fear,  from  people  already  settled,  aU 


C  R  A  B    A  S    A    C  0  M  P  A  M  O  X  .  35 

being  interested  in  advising  you  to  take  land  citlicr  near 
them,  or  far  from  them,  as  the  case  may  happen  to  suit 
them.  It  is  a  difficult  matter  for  a  stranger  to  know 
what  to  do." 

"  You're  a  farmer,  I  take  it,  by  your  look  ?"  said  Mr. 
Crab,  inquiringly. 

"  I  can't  pretend  to  be  a  farmer  like  you,"  said  I, 
"  because  I  am  sure  you're  a  thorough-bred  one,  but  I 
know  something  about  it." 

"  That's  very  properly  said,"  replied  Mr.  Crab. 
''  'Well — I  don't  know,  master,  may  I  ask  your  name  ?" 

"Thornley,"  said  I;  "William  Thornley,  late  of 
Croydon,  in  Surrey  :  some  good  farming  there." 

"  Why,  for  London  farming,  perhaps,  there  may  be ; 
but  you  Londoners  can't  be  supposed  to  understand 
farming  like  us  in  Shropshire.  However,  master,  I'm 
thinking,  that  if  you  like  it,  I'll  go  with  you  over  the 
country  a  bit ;  and  perhaps  I  shall  be  able  to  persuade 
you  not  to  stay  in  this  villainous  place,  but  go  back  to 
the  old  country,  where  people  farm  their  laud  like 
Christians.     I  suppose  you  don't  mistrust  me  ?" 

"  Not  a  bit,"  said  I.  "  There's  honesty  in  your  face ; 
so  now,  if  you  have  rested  long  enough,  let  us  be  mov- 
ing." 

''Come  along,  then,"  said  Mr.  Crab,  "and  I  can 
show  you  a  way  through  the  bush,  where,  although 
rougher  than  the  road,  we  shall  be  screened  from  the 
rays  of  the  sun." 

One  soon  gets  acquainted  with  one's  fellows  in  the 
bush,  where  there  is  not  much  picking  and  choosing  of 
companions,  and  I  and  my  grumbling  friend  soon  got 
pretty  well  used  to  each  other.   We  strolled  on  leisurely. 


36  Strange  Proceedings. 

tliroiigli  the  bush,  and  were  within  a  short  distance  of 
New  Norfolk,  when  our  ears  were  suddenly  assailed  by 
a  confusion  of  sounds  that  startled  the  quiet  wilderness, 
and  made  us  wonder  what  outbreak  or  disorder  could 
occasion  such  a  furious  outcry ;  presently  we  descried  a 
horseman  riding  with  all  his  might  through  the  trees 
beside  us,  now  jumping  over  fallen  timber,  then  ducking 
his  head  to  avoid  the  branches  of  trees,  but  in  spite  of 
the  dangers,  which  he  seemed  ever  to  avoid  by  some 
special  miracle,  still  keeping  at  the  top  of  his  speed, 
and  urging  on  his  horse,  which  seemed  to  be  as  much 
excited  as  the  rider.  Presently  the  cracking,  it  seemed, 
of  innumerable  whips,  making  sharp  reports  like  small 
fire-arms,  was  heard-  around,  and  a  straggling  multitude 
began  to  encircle  us.  We  were  lost  in  amazement  at  these 
strange  proceedings;  but  as  this  was  my  first  introduc- 
tion to  a  curious  branch  of  the  agricultui'al  economy  of 
a  '  Settler,'  I  shall  defer  the  explanation  of  the  disturb- 
ance which  confounded  us  to  a  new  chapter. 


Cjjajitrr  /nurtlj. 


How  to  milk  a  wild  cow— Picture  of  a  Settler's  dwelling— Mutton- 
chops  and  dampers — A  spare  bed — "  Improvisatised" — Mght 
alarm — Sheep-stealing. 

In  the  meantime  the  tumitlt  increased,  and  the 
shouts  of  men  and  the  cracking  of  whips  drawing 
nearer  and  nearer  betokened  a  speedy  catastrophe.  My 
kangaroo-skin  friend  seemed  to  regard  with  a  sort  of 
scornful  glee  the  hurly  burly  around  us.  His  sour 
visage  became  puckered  up  into  a  knotty  contexture, 
expressive  of  the  most  intense  disdain,  coupled  with  a 
secret  satisfaction.  "  Now,"  said  he,  "  master,  you'll 
see  how  they  manage  some  matters  in  this  beautiful 
country." 

"  What  can  the  matter  be  ?"  said  1. 

As  I  pronounced  these  words,  a  sudden  crash  of  dead 
boughs  and  dry  bushes  at  no  great  distance  from  us 
excited  in  me  apprehension  of  danger.  Instinctively  I 
turned  to  the  quarter  whence  the  threatening  sounds  pro- 
ceeded, and  stood  ready  with  my  fowling-piece  against 
accidents.  I  saw  my  friend  Crab  give  a  grim  smile  at 
this  movement,  as  I  was  inclined  to  do  myself,  had  I 
not  been,  I  must  confess,  rather  frightened;  for  at  this 
moment  I  beheld  a  mad  bull,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  mak- 
in<r  right  to  the  spot  where  we  stood.  The  animal  ap- 
peared to  be  in  a  state  of  the  most  intense  excitement, 
with  its  mouth  covered  with  foam,  its  nostrils  dilated, 

(37) 


38  AWildCowChase. 

eyes  wild,  and  its  tail  twisted  into  that  cork-screw  figure 
indicative  of  a  disposition  to  do  mischief.  I  jumped 
aside  as  the  creature  made  a  plunge  at  me,  glad  enough 
to  escape. 

"  It's  a  mad  cow,"  said  I.  "  I  suppose  this  climate 
makes  cattle  very  savage  when  they  get  worried  ?" 

"  Not  madder  than  the  people  that  are  after  her,"  said 
Orab ;  ''  however,  wait  a  bit  till  you  see  the  end  of  it." 

By  this  time  we  were  in  the  midst  of  the  crowd  which 
was  chasing  the  cow,  but  I  could  not  yet  divine  their 
particular  object. 

'<  What  do  you  want  to  do  with  her  ?"  said  I  to  a 
tall  thin  man  who  had  ceased  for  a  moment  to  crack  his 
whip  ;  '■'■  she  seems  terribly  wild." 

"  Wild !"  said  he,  "  the  brute  is  always  wild,  but 
she's  one  of  the  best  milkers  I've  got,  and  have  her  in 
the  stock-yard  I  will  this  blessed  evening,  if  I  raise  all 
New  Norfolk  for  it." 

"  I  shall  be  glad  to  lend  a  hand,"  said  I,  "  but  I'm 
not  used  to  the  ways  of  the  country  yet,  and  perhaps  I 
might  do  harm  instead  of  good." 

But  my  aid  was  not  wanted  on  this  occasion,  for  at 
this  moment  a  general  shout  in  the  distance  proclaimed 
that  the  victory  was  won.  I  and  Crab,  with  the  tall 
thin  man,  the  proprietor  of  the  vivacious  cow,  imrae 
diately  set  off  at  a  rapid  pace  for  the  scene  of  triumph. 
There  were  about  thirty  people  assembled,  among  whom 
were  one  or  two  women.  I  observed  that  some  of  the 
men  were  provided  with  ropes  made  of  bullock's  hide 
twisted  together,  of  great  strength.  I  was  still  puzzled 
to  know  what  was  intended  by  all  these  preparations. 
Presently  a  farming  man  appeared,  with  a  tin  pannikin, 


New   "Way  TO  Milk  A  Cow.         39 

01  a  half-pint  measure,  and  a  stool  with  one  leg.  The 
stool  with  one  leg  looked  like  a  design  to  milk  the 
animal,  but  what  the  tin  pannikin  was  for  was  a  mystery 
to  me.  Had  there  been  a  milk-pail,  I  should  have  made 
out  their  object  at  once ;  but  this  piece  of  machinery 
was  as  yet  but  little  known  in  the  colony.  I  continued 
to  watch  the  proceedings  with  great  interest,  when  pres- 
ently a  man  advanced  with  a  stoutish  long  stick,  or 
small  pole,  with  a  hide-rope  forming  a  large  loop  at  the 
end  of  it;  the  other  part  of  the  rope  he  held  in  one  hand 
in  a  coil.  Climbing  over  the  rails  of  the  stock-yard, 
which  were  formed  of  the  solid  trunks  of  trees  placed 
lengthways,  about  six  feet  high,  he  stood  within  the 
space.  The  cow  eyed  him  as  if  she  was  used  to  the 
game,  and  without  waiting  to  be  attacked,  made  a  dart 
at  him  ferociously.  This  did  not  disconcert  the  man 
with  the  pole  and  loop,  who,  stepping  aside  with  the 
most  perfect  coolness,  and  with  infinite  agility,  let  the 
animal  knock  her  head  against  the  rails,  which  she  did 
with  a  force  that  made  the  massive  pile  tremble.  This 
process  was  repeated  several  times,  to  the  great  amuse- 
ment of  the  spectators,  some  of  whom  applauded  the 
pole-bearer's  nimbleness,  while  others  were  inclined  to 
back  the  cow. 

"  That  was  a  near  go,"  said  one,  as  the  beast  made  a 
sudden  plunge  at  her  tormentor,  tearing  oiFwith  her  horn 
a  portion  of  his  jacket;  ''she'll  pin  you  presently,  Jem." 

"  Never  fear,"  said  Jem,  "a  miss  is  as  good  as  a  mile. 
She  is  the  most  cantankerous  varmint  I  ever  see'd :  but 
I'll  have  her  yet." 

"What  are  you  going  to  do,"  said  I;  "kill  her?" 

"  Kill  her  !"  exclaimed  my  tall  friend ;  "  what !  kill 


40  T  H  E  C  0  W  M  I  L  K  E  D  . 

the  best,  tlie  nicest,  and  sweetest-tempered  creature  of 
the  whole  herd  ?  She's  so  tame,  she'll  almost  let  you  pat 
her,  only  she  doesn't  like  to  be  milked ;  that  always  puts 
her  out.  Now  for  it.  Jemmy,  that's  the  way ;  haul  in 
quick,  keep  it  up — don't  slack — hold  her  tight,  now 
we've  got  her.     Where's  the  foot  rope  ?" 

Watching  his  opportunity,  the  man  with  the  pole  had 
succeeded  in  throwing  the  loop  over  the  animal's  horns, 
and  two  or  three  men  on  the  outside  of  the  yard,  quickly 
gathering  in  the  end  of  it,  hauled  it  taut,  as  seamen  do  a 
cable  in  getting  up  the  anchor,  round  the  thick  stump  of 
a  tree.  I  looked  at  Crab  at  this  stage  of  the  proceedings, 
and  I  admired  the  expression  of  scornful  enjoyment 
which  his  sour  face  exhibited.  He  gave  me  a  glance, 
which  said,  without  the  necessity  of  words,  "  This  is  the 
way  they  milk  a  cow  in  this  country."  The  cow,  how- 
ever, was  not  milked  yet;  to  arrive  at  that  conclusion, 
some  further  steps  were  necessary.  The  animal  was  now 
standing  with  its  legs  firmly  planted  before  it,  its  neck 
elongated,  its  tongue  hanging  out  of  its  mouth,  and  kick- 
ing with  its  hind  legs  continuously.  These  refractory 
members  were  now  secured  by  a  loop,  into  which  they  were 
dexterously  insinuated,  and'  half  a  dozen  men  catching 
up  the  end,  hauled  it  out,  and  kept  it  on  the  stretch,  to 
prevent  her  from  plunging  about.  The  creature,  it 
seems,  was  now  in  a  correct  posture  to  be  milked.  Crab 
gave  me  another  look. 

The  man  with  the  one-legged  stool  and  pannikin  now 
advanced,  speaking  soothingly  to  the  animal  to  be  ope- 
rated on,  and  using  much  ceremony  and  caution  in  his 
approach.  Seiziijg  a  favourable  opportunity,  he  contrived 
to  squeeze  a  few  drops  of  milk  into  his  pannikin ;  but  the 


Australian   Hospitality.         41 

sensitive  cow,  outraged,  it  scemorl,  at  this  indignity  ou 
her  person,  gave  a  sudden  plunge,  which  upset  the  heel- 
rope  holders,  and,  recovering  her  legs,  she  kicked  man, 
stool,  and  pannikin  over  and  over.  Shouts  of  laughter 
proclaimed  the  amusement  of  the  bystanders,  and  numer- 
ous were  the  gibes  and  jeers  lavished  on  the  occasion. 
And  now,  the  pride  of  the  stockmen  being  roused,  and 
their  honour  piqued  by  the  presence  besides  of  two 
strangers,  the  witness  of  their  manoeuvres,  they  set  to 
again  to  manacle  the  almost-spent  animal ;  and  he  of  the 
pannikin,  discarding  the  stool  as  a  womanly  encumbrance, 
boldly  kneeling  down,  with  the  determination  of  a  hero, 
and  undaunted  by  the  moanings  and  writhings  of  his  vic- 
tim, contrived  to  exude  from  her  about  half  a  pint  of 
milk.  This  triumph  achieved,  the  cow  was  set  at  liberty, 
the  poles  of  the  gateway  were  withdrawn,  and  the  animal 
bounded  into  the  bush. 

''Well,  master,"  said  Crab,  "did  you  ever  see  a  cow 
milked  that  way  before  ?" 

"  Surely,"  said  I,  "  they  might  manage  better  than 
this." 

"Ah!"  said  Crab,  "this  would  be  a  tale  to  tell  in 
Shropshire.  It's  worth  while  to  go  back  only  to  tell  this 
much.  But  you'll  see  more  curiosities,  master,  as  you 
go  on." 

"  Come  with  me,"  said  the  proprietor  of  the  cow,  "and 
see  my  house,  and  my  farm,  and  my  wife  and  children. 
I  see  you're  a  stranger  (addressing  me) ;  as  to  you," 
looking  at  Crab  doubtfully,  "you  seem  to  have  settled 
down  into  the  habits  of  the  place,  to  judge  by  your 
dress,  though  it  is  a  little  quecrish  even  for  the  bush. 
Where  are  you  come  from  ?" 


42         Australian  Farm-House. 

"  I  am  come  from  camp,  "  said  I,  ''  to  look  for  land, 
and  this — (gentleman  I  would  have  said,  but  as  I  looked 
at  my  companion  the  word  stuck  in  my  throat) — this  set- 
tler—" 

"  Don't  call  me  a  settler,"  said  Crab,  "  I  arn't  going  to 
settle,  as  you  call  it ;  the  bush-rangers,  and  the  convicts, 
and  the  thieves  of  people  have  settled  me." 

"  Well,"  I  said,  "  I  met  my  companion  by  the  way, 
and  he  has  had  the  kindness  to  offer  to  show  me  the  coun- 
try." 

"  You've  come  to  the  wrong  place,"  said  the  New  Nor- 
folk man,  "  to  look  for  land  ;  there's  none  to  be  had  here. 
The  land  hereabouts  is  but  poorish,  after  all,  and  we 
settled  on  it  more  for  the  sake  of  the  water-carriage  than 
for  the  quality  of  the  land.  But  there's  my  house,  just 
on  the  other  side  of  the  water;  cross  over  with  me,  and 
at  any  rate  you  shall  have  a  hearty  welcome." 

I  cannot  easily  describe  the  feelings  of  interest  and  cu- 
riosity with  which  I  approached  the  place.  I  regarded 
it  as  a  mirror  into  which  I  was  about  to  look  for  the 
reflection  of  the  condition  which  in  a  little  time  I  was 
myself  to  assume.  The  golden  visions  in  which  I  had 
indulged  on  ship-board  had  already  begun  to  vanish  be- 
fore the  rough  realities  of  settling  in  a  new  country,  and 
it  was  not  without  a  tincture  of  sadness  that  I  prepared 
myself  for  a  view  of  a  settler's  farm.  I  will  endeavour 
to  describe  it  as  it  existed  twenty  years  ago,  and  as  it  may 
still  be  found,  in  its  material  resemblance,  in  some  parts 
of  the  colony. 

I  beheld  before  me  a  low  building,  which  I  afterwards 
ascertained  was  built  of  the  logs  of  the  stringy-bark  tree, 
split  in  half,  and  set  on  end.     The  building  was  about 


Appearance  op  the  Farm.         43 

thirty  feet  long,  and  whitewashed.  Its  roof  was  com- 
posed of  shingles  j  that  is,  of  slips  of  wood  about  nine 
inches  long,  four  inches  broad,  and  a  quarter  of  an  inch 
thick.  These  shingles  had  acquired  a  bluish  cast,  from 
exposure  to  the  atmosphere,  and  had  a  slatish  appearance. 
At  one  end  of  the  house  was  a  rough-looking  piece  of 
stone-work,  formed  of  irregular  pieces  of  stone  procured 
near  the  spot,  and  forming  the  end  wall  and  chimney. 
At  the  back  of  the  building  was  a  tolerably  large  stack 
of  wheat,  enclosed  with  trunks  of  trees,  forming  an  occa- 
sional small  stock-yard.  At  one  side  was  a  garden,  paled 
in  with  palings  of  the  stringy-bark  tree  split  into  irregu- 
lar rough  boards  or  pales.  I  could  see  in  this  garden  the 
aspect  of  the  most  luxuriant  vegetation.  In  front  of  the 
house  a  small  tree  was  left  standing,  from  one  of  the 
boughs  of  which  was  suspended  a  sheep  newly  killed. 

At  the  sight  of  our  approach,  it  seems,  an  attack  was 
instantly  made  on  the  carcass,  as  a  man  was  busily  em- 
ployed in  cutting  it  up.  At  the  same  time,  a  sun-burnt 
but  very  pretty  face  became  visible  at  the  door  of  the 
house,  and  instantly  disappearing,  a  hissing  sound  was 
immediately  heard  within,  proclaiming  that  some  culinary 
preparation  was  put  in  progress.  At  a  little  distance  was 
heard  the  bleating  of  a  small  flock  of  sheep,  for  evening 
was  now  set  in  ;  and  from  another  quarter  a  team  of  bul- 
locks, urged  on  by  a  strange  looking  driver,  with  an  im- 
mense cracking  of  his  whip,  and  a  prodigious  deal  of  ex- 
postulation, slowly  drew  near  with  a  huge  load  of  wood 
for  fuel.  We  were  in  the  act  of  entering  the  house,  when 
our  passage  was  impeded  by  a  tiny  swarm  of  little  chil- 
dren, the  eldest  about  seven — the  youngest  of  the  six  being 
held  up  by  the  eldest  to  greet  its  father.     Each  was  pro- 


44  The  Farmer's   Faimilt. 

vidtd  with  a  thick  lump  of  "  damper,"  which  had  been 
Berved  out  to  amuse  them  until  the  more  substantial  re- 
past should  be  prepared.  The  clothing  of  these  urchins 
was  of  the  lightest  possible  description  consistent  with 
decency,  and  moccasins  seemed  to  be  the  prevailing  fash- 
ion. They  were  clean,  however,  and  cheerful,  but  in- 
clined to  have  a  lanky  appearance,  like  little  weeds  run- 
ning to  seed.  This,  I  ascertained  afterwards,  was  the 
general  appearance  of  the  children  born  in  the  colony. 

"■  Any  milk,  father?"  said  a  little  lisping  girl. 

"  Just  a  drop,  my  dear,  for  your  mother  and  the  baby. 
Where's  your  brother  ?" 

As  he  spoke,  a  slender  lad,  of  about  ten  years  of  age, 
made  his  appearance,  with  a  grave  and  tired  air.  He 
came  up  to  greet  his  father. 

<'  Sheep  all  right,  Ned  ?" 

"  Yes,  father ;  we  should  have  left  them  on  the  Green, 
hill  all  night,  but  Dick  saw  two  men  watching  the  flock 
in  the  early  morning,  and  he  came  upon  them  again  in 
the  afternoon.  He  doesn't  half  like  their  looks.  But 
the  sheep  are  safe  enough  now  in  the  little  yard." 

"  Now,  Sir/'  said  the  New  Norfolk  man,  "  if  you're 
inclined  for  supper,  come  along." 

We  entered  the  habitation,  which  consisted  of  one  spa- 
cious apartment,  opening  into  the  air.  At  the  end  op- 
posite the  chimney  a  space  was  divided  off"  into  two 
small  bedrooms.  Opposite  to  the  entrance  of  the  house 
a  door  led  to  a  skillion,  which  served  for  a  kitchen ;  and 
it  was  from  that  spot  that  the  hissing  sounds,  now  be- 
come more  \dolent,  proceeded.  In  the  middle  of  the 
principal  apartment  was  a  rough  table  of  boards,  on 
which  were  disposed  sundry  tin  pannikins,  a  few  plates, 


An   Australian  Supper.  45 

with  some  odd  knives  and  forks.  A  gigantic  green  bot- 
tle, containing  rum,  graced  one  corner  of  the  table,  and 
in  the  centre  was  set,  as  a  place  of  honour,  the  pannikin 
cf  milk  wliii-h  had  boon  obtainod  by  the  united  efforts 
of  the  establishments  within  reach. 

And  now  the  hostess  emerged  from  the  back  recess, 
bearing  in  her  bands  an  enormous  dish  of  mutton-chops, 
which  was  quickly  followed  by  another  dish,  in  which 
appeared  a  sort  of  doughy  cake. 

"  I  thought,"  said  the  lady  of  the  house,  "  you  would 
like  a  cake  in  the  pan  better  than  a  damper ;  so  here  it 
is.  Edward,  help  the  gentlemen;  they  have  had  a  long 
walk,  and  must  be  hungry." 

This  hospitable  intimation  was  responded  to  by  her 
husband,  who  forthwith  thrust  out  of  the  large  dish 
three  or  four  of  the  chops  into  a  plate,  and  handed  them 
to  me.  "Help  yourself,"  said  he  to  my  companion  j 
"you're  used  to  the  ways  of  the  place.  Where's  the 
salt  ?     No  mustard  ?" 

"  The  mustard's  out ;  we  must  have  some  more  from  the 
camp.  And  the  salt !  Well,  that  is  unlucky.  I  declare 
there's  not  an  atom  left.  Well,  you  must  do  without  it, 
or  we  can  send  to  Conolly's  farm,  not  three  miles  off.  I 
know  they've  got  salt  there,  for  they  were  to  salt  down 
a  bullock  to-day." 

"  Don't  trouble  yourself,"  said  Crab;  "I've  got  somo 
salt  in  my  pocket — in  this  kangaroo  jacket,  which  the 
bush-rangers  gave  me  for  mine.  I  dare  say  they've 
missed  the  salt  before  now,  confound  them."  With  this 
he  inserted  his  fingers  into  a  recess  of  his  hairy  garment, 
and  produced  a  small  quantity  of  a  blackish  and  gritty 
substance. 


46  Crab's   Experience. 

"  Ah  !"  said  our  hostess,  "  that's  come  from  Saltpan 
Plains.  Well,  any  is  better  than  none.  And  so, 
friend,  the  bush-rangers  have  had  hold  of  you;  did  they 
treat  you  ill  ?" 

"  They  just  stripped  me  of  everything  I  had  got — 
luckily  my  money  was  left  in  camp — and  made  me  carry 
their  baggage  for  three  days.  No  joke  that  in  the  sun,  I 
can  tell  you.  But  I  saw  a  good  bit  of  the  country  with 
them.  It's  a  dreadful  country ;  all  up  hill  and  down 
dale.  Scarcely  a  good  bit  of  land  to  be  seen  anywhere. 
I  do  believe  that  there  isn't  any  twelve  acres  in  the 
country  that  would  feed  a  single  sheep  for  the  whole 
year." 

"  You  don't  seem  to  like  the  country,"  said  mine  host, 
addressing  Crab. 

"  Like  it !  How  can  any  one  like  it  ?  Who  would 
live  in  it  that  could  get  out  of  it?  There  isn't  one 
single  thing  to  stay  for.  Poor  land ;  where  it's  better, 
it's  covered  with  trees,  and  they  must  be  cut  down  be- 
fore you  can  get  at  the  soil  to  do  anything  with  it.  And 
then  the  stumps !  Impossible  to  drive  a  plough  in  a 
straight  line.  And  then,  suppose  you  have  stock ;  if 
you  have  cattle,  they  start  away  into  tlie  bush,  and  catch 
'em  again  when  you  can !  And  if  you  have  sheep, 
they're  driven  away  by  the  thieves,  and  find  'em  again 
if  you  can  ;  let  alone  being  shot  at  when  you're  looking 
after  them.  As  to  the  bush-rangers,  it's  very  pleasant, 
isn't  it,  to  have  your  house  broken  open  in  the  middle 
of  the  night,  and  everything  cleaned  out  of  it,  while 
you  have  the  satisfaction  of  looking  on  with  your  hands 
tied  behind  your  back,  and  a  blackguard  pointing  a 
cocked  musket  at  your  head  ?     Oh  !  the  fools  that  come 


Mutton   Chops  and  Dampers.      47 

here  deserve  to  be  rob])cd,  and  starved,  and  murdered, 
I  say,  serve  'em  right  for  being  such  fools  as  to  come, 
and  bigger  fools  to  stay  I" 

The  pile  of  mutton-chops  was  now  discussed,  and  the 
ponderous  cake  in  the  pan  had  nearly  disappeared  under 
the  vigorous  attacks  of  the  party.  Mine  host  now  turned 
to  the  bottle  of  rum. 

"  If  we  only  had  a  lemon  here,  we  would  cook  up  a 
bowl  of  punch.  But,  never  mind,  we  must  make  the  best 
of  what  we  have  got." 

With  this  philosophic  remark,  he  poured  into  his  pan- 
nikin about  a  quarter  of  a  pint  of  rum,  qualifying  it  with 
what  seemed  to  me  an  exceedingly  small  modicum  of 
water  out  of  a  pail  that  stood  by,  and  invited  me  and 
my  companion  to  do  the  same.  Not  being  used  to  the 
liquor,  I  declined,  much  to  the  astonishment  of  the  New 
Norfolk  man;  but  Crab,  without  any  hesitation,  poured 
out  for  himself  a  stiff  portion  of  the  stuif,  evincing  that 
in  this  particular  he  had  condescended  to  conform  with 
the  customs  of  the  colony.  I  must  not  omit  to  mention 
that  while  our  banquet  of  mutton-chops  was  being  en- 
joyed by  the  cider  portion  of  the  company,  the  good 
dame  of  the  house  served  out  tea  to  the  juveniles  from 
an  iron  tripod  boiling  on  the  hearth.  A  handful  of  tea 
was  thrown  into  this  receptacle,  and  set  to  boil.  The  tin 
pannikin  of  each  w'as  then  successively  inserted  in  thej 
decoction,  to  which  was  added  some  very  dark  looking 
brown  sugar.  The  unusual  luxury  of  milk  added  an 
especial  zest  to  this  refection,  the  imbibing  of  which  was 
interspersed  with  frequent  and  unceremonious  attacks  on 
the  pyramid  of  mutton-chops,  not  forgetting  the  cake  in 
the  pan  and  the  eternal  damper,  the  never-failing  accom- 
paniment in  those  times  of  a  farmer's  meal. 


48     My  First  Night  in  the  Bush. 

Symptoms  of  drowsiness  now  began  to  appear.  The 
young  fry  had  long  since  been  stowed  away  in  their  va- 
rious dormitories,  and  our  worthy  hostess  bestirred  her- 
self to  contrive  some  place  of  rest  for  myself  and  my 
companion.  With  this  intent,  her  husband  was  dislodged 
from  a  sort  of  wooden  sofa  or  bench,  and  Dick  was  called 
in  to  assist  in  the  preparations. 

''Have  those  kangaroo  skins  been  sent  into  camp?" 

"  No,  missis — they're  in  the  hut — and  they'll  make  a 
capital  bed  for  the  gentlemen.    I'll  get  'em  in  a  minute." 

A  heap  of  crackling  skins  was  presently  produced, 
which  Dick,  acting  as  chambermaid,  proceeded  to  arrange 
for  my  accommodation.  A  contribution  of  blankets  and 
rugs  was  levied  on  the  premises  to  make  up  our  beds,  my 
friend  Crab  being  accommodated  with  a  heap  of  sacks 
spread  on  the  floor.  In  this  manner,  after  the  usual  com- 
pliments, we  prepared  to  take  our  rest.  Crab,  I  observed, 
flung  himself  on  the  sacks  without  the  ceremony  of  taking 
off  his  clothes,  and  presenting  the  appearance  of  a  huge 
hairy  animal  of  a  nondescript  character,  soon  gave  indi- 
cations of  being  sound  asleep.  As  for  myself,  fatiguec^ 
as  I  was,  the  novelty  of  the  scene,  and  the  excitement  of 
the  day's  journey,  kept  me  awake  for  some  time.  I  pon- 
dered on  my  first  day's  experience  of  a  settler's  life ;  the 
rudeness  of  the  cottage ;  the  roughness  of  the  materials 
about  it ;  the  coarseness  of  the  food,  in  the  manner  of 
serving  it,  as  well  as  in  its  substance ;  the  slovenliness  and 
uncouthness  of  the  farming  establishment,  so  far  as  I  had 
been  able  to  inspect  it;  and  a  feeling  of  disappointment 
and  of  insecurity  which  I  could  not  shake  off,  all  tended 
to  sadden  me.  Everything  was  quiet  within  and  with- 
out ;  the  very  dogs,  watchful  as  they  arc  in  this  country, 


Sudden   Alarm.  49 

sccmod  to  be  bm-k'd  iu  sleep.  Gradually  my  tl.ou^bts 
grew  more  and  more  confused  as  weariness  overpowered 
me,  and  I  fell  asleep. 

My  rest,  however,  was  not  destined  to  be  of  long  dura- 
tion. About  three  o'clock  in  the  morning,  I  was  dream- 
ing that  I  was  in  Hobart  Town  with  my  wife  and  chil- 
dren, and  that  we  were  exclaiming  against  the  annoyance 
of  the  ceaseless  barking  of  the  dogs.  The  barking  grew 
louder  and  louder,  and  my  children,  it  seemed  to  me, 
began  to  cry,  frightened  at  the  fierceness  of  the  uproar. 
I  started  up  to  still  them,  and  in  so  doing,  awoke.  The 
dream,  however,  had  been  suggested  by  a  present  reality. 
My  host's  dogs  were  barking  violently  outside,  and  tlie 
children  were  joining  in  chorus  in  aid  of  the  general 
outcry.  The  door  of  the  house  was  now  vehemently 
assailed  by  Dick,  the  shepherd,  and  my  host,  roused  from 
his  slumbers,  was  quickly  on  the  alert. 

"  Master  !"  cried  out  Dick,  "■  the  sheep  are  out  of  the 
yard — there's  mischief  abroad.  You  had  better  look  to 
yourselves  inside.  The  stranger  gentleman  has  got  a 
gun  with  him — is  he  waked  up  V 

"  All  ready,"  said  I,  jumping  up  in  the  dusk,  "  gun 
and  all ;  but  what's  the  matter  ?  have  the  bush-rangers 
attacked  us  ?" 

*<  Of  course  they  have,"  said  Crab,  who  had  risen  from 
his  couch  of  sacks ;  "  of  course  !  what  else  could  you 
expect  ?  Bush-rangers,  ah,  to  be  sure  !  this  is  a  pleas- 
ant place  to  live  in.  But  I  suppose  you  won't  give  in, 
master,"  speaking  to  our  host,  "without  a  bit  of  a 
scrimmage  ?" 

"  Hope  not,"  said  the  farmer,  "  it's  bad  fighting  with 
the  bush-rangers  when  you  have  a  wife  and  children  to 
4 


50  Sheep-Stealers. 

defend.  But  I  don't  think  it's  them ;  it's  only  some 
chaps  after  the  sheep ;  but  they  must  be  cautiously  dealt 
Avith,  for  they  don't  mind  giving  you  a  shot  when  they're 
close  run." 

"  What's  o'clock  ?" 

"  It's  a  quarter  past  three." 

"  Ah — then  it's  not  far  from  daylight.  Rouse  up  the 
men,  Dick,  and  call  the  dogs  in.  It's  not  much  use  to 
follow  till  there's  light  enough  to  see  the  tracks.  Keep 
close,  my  dear  (to  his  wife,  who  had  huddled  on  her 
clothes),  while  I'am  away,  and  don't  let  the  children 
stray  about.  This  is  no  bush-ranger's  affair,  but  it's  an 
audacious  trick  to  drive  away  a  man's  sheep  under  his 
very  nose,  I  must  say.  I  and  Dick  will  follow  the  track. 
Give  me  my  musket.  Where  are  the  cartridges  ?  That's 
right.  I'll  take  that  half  damper  with  me ;  we  may 
want  it  before  we  come  back.  Dick,  we'll  take  Hector 
and  Fly  with  us  ;  let  the  other  dogs  be  kept  back.  I 
wish  the  mare  had  not  run  off  to  the  bush  just  at  this 
time.  Well,  perhaps  we  are  better  on  foot,  as  it's  sheep 
we  are  after.     Now,  Sirs,  I  must  wish  you  good  bye." 

"  Good  bye !"  said  Crab  j  "  not  a  bit  of  it.  You 
don't  suppose  I'am  going  to  eat  your  meat,  and  drink 
your  rum,  and  desert  you  in  this  strait.  No — no — I'll 
lend  you  a  hand.  Just  give  me  a  good  thick  stick, 
that's  what  I'm  best  used  to,  and  I'll  stand  by  you. 
And  you,  master,"  speaking  to  me,  "  you'll  come  too, 
won't  you  ?     Your  barrel  may  be  of  use  to  us." 

"  I'll  go  with  you  with  pleasure,"  said  I.  "  I  know 
nothing  of  the  bush  yet,  but  I'll  do  what  I  can  to  help." 

"  Thank  you  both,"  said  our  host ;  "  we  shall  be  four 
men  with  two  barrels,  and  three  men  left  behind  to  take 


Pretarations  TV  Track  Them,    51 

care  of  the  farm.  We  may  have  a  long  journey  before 
us,  so  prepare  yourselves  for  it.  Wife,  get  out  a  bottle 
of  rum  ;  Dick,  you'll  Lave  no  objection  to  carry  it,  I'm 
sure  ;  but  play  fair,  my  man." 

'  Better  take  a  couple  of  pannikins  with  us,"  said 
Dick. 

"  Right,"  said  our  host.  "  And,  Dick,  take  a  light 
tether  rope  with  you — we  may  want  it.  And  now  let 
no  one  speak ;  and  don't  let  it  be  known,  if  we  can  help 
it,  how  many  have  left  the  farm." 

"I  think  it  would  be  the  best  way,"  said  the  prac- 
tised shepherd,  "  for  two  to  go  to  the  right  and  two  to 
the  left,  and  meet  at  the  Green  Hill,  so  that  we  shall 
be  sure  to  cross  the  track ;  no  doubt  there  will  be  plenty 
of  tracks ;  that's  the  trick  of  the  rascals,  but  we  must 
try  to  get  on  the  main  one." 

"  Take  the  man  with  the  kangaroo-skin  jacket  with 
you,  then,"  said  the  farmer,  "  and  go  to  the  left,  and  I 
and  the  gentleman  will  take  the  right.  And  here,  take 
the  musket,  that  there  may  be  a  barrel  with  each  party. 
We  must  make  the  best  use  of  our  time,  or  we  shall 
have  no  chance  of  coming  up  with  the  rogues. 

The  day  now  began  to  dawn,  and  there  was  light 
enough  to  see  where  to  set  the  foot.  Each  party  pro- 
ceeded to  its  destination  without  further  delay,  and  I 
soon  found  myself  with  the  farmer  at  a  considerable  dis- 
tance from  the  homestead.  We  kept  near  the  banks  of 
the  river  for  about  half  a  mile,  and  then  turning  to  the 
left,  the  farmer  began  diligently  to  search  for  the  tracks 
of  the  stolen  flock.  I  assisted  him  in  his  search  as 
well  as  I  could,  and  we  were  both  so  absorbed  in  our 
examination,  that  we  did  not   perceive,  till  we  came 


52  We  Come  Upon  Them. 

suddenly  upon  them,  on  turning  round  an  eminence,  a 
mob  of  natives,  seated  by  a  fire.  They  started  up  at 
our  approach,  and  the  farmer,  laying  his  hand  on  my 
arm,  paused,  with  some  signs  of  alarm,  to  reconnoitre 
them. 


Pursuit  of  the  sheep-stealers— Meeting  with  the  natives — The  black 
man's  instinct  in  tracking — AValk  over  the  country — Finds  Iund 
to  please  him — Returns  to  Hobart  Town  with  his  new  acquain- 
tance, Crab — Proceeds  with  his  family  to  the  Clyde. 

"There's  no  harm  in  them,"  said  the  New  Norfolk 
man,  after  having  examined  the  natives  for  a  little  time; 
"  this  is  a  town  mob ;  you  see  they  have  got  blankets 
among  them ;  but  it  is  always  weU  to  be  on  one's  guard, 
for  they're  treacherous  devils.  Don't  let  your  gun  out 
of  your  hand,  and  don't  show  any  fear  of  them.  Now 
we'll  go  among  them  ;  if  I  could  make  'em  understand 
that  I  am  looking  after  strayed  sheep,  they  could  be  of 
use  to  me  I  don't  doubt." 

While  he  was  speaking,  we  advanced  towards  the  fire, 
the  natives  standing  near  us  here  and  there,  and  gazing 
at  us  with  a  sort  of  cold,  lazy,  idiotic  look.  Near  the 
fire  was  the  log  of  a  tree,  and  my  New  Norfolk  friend 
motioned  me  to  sit  down. 

"Sit  opposite  to  me — there — face  to  face — so  that 
each  may  see  what  is  going  on  at  the  other's  back,  with- 
out seeming  to  take  particular  notice.  I'll  try  if  I  can 
make  anything  out  of  these  fellows." 

Three  or  four  of  the  natives,  meanwhile,  re-seated 
themselves  at  the  fire,  and  resumed  the  meal  which,  it 
seems,  our  approach  had  interrupted. 

I  was  a  little  curious  to  observe  how  these  gravc-look- 

(53) 


54  Native  Delicacies. 

ing  black  personages  were  pleased  to  conduct  the  cere- 
mony of  their  morning's  repast,  and  my  curiosity  was 
presently  gratified.  Being  satisfied,  I  presume,  that  we 
had  no  hostile  intentions,  they  continued  their  culinary 
preparations.  A  tall  and  slender  young  lady,  with  a 
ragged  blanket  gracefvilly  festooned  about  her  person,  ap- 
peared with  a  net  slung  round  her  neck,  in  which  was 
a  large  lump  of  gum.  She  handed  this  lump  of  gum, 
about  the  size  of  a  small  cocoa-nut,  to  one  of  the  men. 
Another  lady  produced  an  opossum,  which  looked  to  me 
something  between  a  dead  cat  and  a  squirrel.  The  gum 
and  the  opossum  were  thrown  on  the  fire,  the  hair  on  the 
outside  of  the  latter,  and  whatever  it  had  in  its  inside 
helping  to  its  relish.  After  the  gum  and  the  opossum 
had  fizzed,  and  crackled,  and  smoked  a  little  time,  one 
of  the  party  snatched  out  the  opossum  from  the  fire, 
and  plunging  his  face  into  its  entrails,  enjoyed  himself 
with  the  delicacy  for  a  brief  space,  and  then  threw  back 
the  remains  on  the  fii'e ;  another  of  the  party  snatched 
it  up,  and  tearing  the  limbs  asunder,  and  picking  off  the 
choicest  bits,  chucked  the  half-picked  bones  to  the  ladies 
of  the  community,  who  stood  behind  them,  and  who 
received  these  testimonials  of  affection  with  much  submis- 
siveness  and  respect,  and  with  considerable  gratification. 

"  They  don't  seem  to  have  much  respect  for  the  ladies," 
said  I  to  my  New  Norfolk  friend.  "  These  black  fellows 
take  the  lion's  share  of  the  breakfast." 

"  Oh,  that's  the  way  they  always  treat  their  gins." 

"Their  gins!  what  are  they?" 

"  Oh,  they  call  their  wives  '  gins.'  You  see,  a  native 
will  have  three,  or  four,  or  five,  or  perhaps  more  wives, 
according  to  accident — sometimes  more,  sometimes  less; 


Opossum  with  G  u  ji  Sauce.         55 

I  rather  think  it's  according  as  they  can  find  food.  They 
make  their  gins  work  for  them,  and  collect  the  little  bits 
of  gum  from  the  trees,  such  as  you  saw  in  that  one's  net 
just  now.  And  they're  capital  hands  to  catch  opossums  ! 
I've  seen  a  black  gin  get  up  a  stringy  bark  tree  after  a 
'possum  as  well  as  any  one  of  the  men  could.  But  they 
seem  to  have  done  breakfast.  I  must  try  now  to  get  them 
to  help  me  after  the  sheep." 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  the  repast  which  I  have 
slightly  described,  passed  in  utter  silence,  the  natives 
eating  voraciously  of  the  singed  opossum  and  the  hot 
lumps  of  gum  without  speaking  or  noticing  us.  On  the 
principle  that  it  is  ill  to  come  between  a  fasting  man  and 
his  meat,  the  farmer  had  refrained  from  asking  any  ques- 
tions or  making  any  proposals  about  his  lost  sheep,  until 
the  natives  were  free  to  attend  to  him.  He  looked  out, 
therefore,  for  the  chief  of  the  party,  and  the  following 
colloquy  took  place : — 

"  Much  kangaroo  ?" 

"  Kangaroo  gone." 

"  Opossum  good  ?" 

"Good." 

The  correctness  with  which  these  few  words  were  pro- 
nounced by  the  black  man  surprised  me. 

"  Do  they  speak  English  ?"  said  I  to  my  companion. 

"  Only  a  word  or  two ;  but  they  are  capital  mimics ; 
they  catch  hold  of  a  word  and  repeat  it  very  correctly 
even  when  they  don't  understand  it." 

"  Sheep  many  ?"  continued  my  companion  to  the  chief. 

"Sheep  many." 

"  Sheep  gone,"  said  my  friend,  pointing  to  a  hill  in  the 
distance. 

The  black  man  shook  his  head. 


5G  Striking  A  Bargain  with  Natives. 

"  Find  sheep  ?"  said  the  farmer,  accompanying  the 
words  with  the  action  of  a  man  searching  for  tracks  on 
the  ground. 

The  black  man  turned  to  his  companions,  and  said 
something  to  them  which  we  could  not  understand.  The 
group  gathered  nearer  to  us,  and  chattered  together 
doubtfully. 

"  They  have  not  seen  the  sheep  driven  away,"  said  the 
farmer  to  me ;  indeed  they  could  not,  as  the  job  was  done 
before  it  was  light,  and  the  natives  never  move  about  in 
the  dark;  ''but  I  think  they  understand  what  I  mean, 
and  are  considering  about  it  in  their  way.  See,  the  black 
chief  with  the  red  cotton  handkerchief  round  his  neck  is 
going  to  speak.     I  suppose  it's  about  the  terms." 

"  Sheep  gone  ?"  said  the  black  man. 

"Gone!"  said  my  friend;  "can't  find;"  and  he 
repeated  the  gestures  of  looking  for  tracks  on  the 
ground. 

"  What  give  ?"  said  the  native. 

"  Now  what  shall  I  offer  the  rascals  ?"  said  my 
friend.  "  They  are  too  knowing  by  half ;  I  don't  know 
which  are  the  worst,  the  wild  or  the  tame  ones.  It's 
astonishing  how  soon  savages  learn  our  Christian  ways 
of  doing  nothing  for  nothing.  By  the  look  of  that 
black  villain's  face,  he's  determined  to  make  a  bargain 
ofit." 

"  I've  some  dollars  in  my  pocket,"  said  I;  "  I'm  sure 
they  are  much  at  your  service." 

"It's  not  dollars  they  want;  they  don't  understand 
the  meaning  of  money  yet ;  but  they  want  what's  as 
good  as  money." 

"  What  give !"  said  he  to  the  black  functionary ; 
"give  bottle  of  rum." 


Three  Bottles  an   Induce.ment.  57 

The  words  "  bottle  of  rum"  seemed  to  be  perfectly 
well  understood  by  the  black  creatures,  but  they  looked 
to  their  chief;  their  chief  looked  at  them,  and  seemed 
to  consider  in  his  mind  how  much,  after  sharing  the 
contents  of  the  bottle  among  his  tail — to  the  number 
of  about  twenty — would  remain  for  himself. 

He  shook  his  head. 

"  One  bottle,"  pointing  to  the  group,  "little." 

"  The  old  rascal,"  exclaimed  my  companion ;  "  he's 
as  hard  to  deal  with  as  a  camp  storekeeper ;  but  he  can 
do  what  I  want  if  he  likes,  I'm  sure ;  I'll  try  him  with 
another  bottle." 

"  Two  (holding  up  two  fingers),  two  bottles  of  rum." 

"  Two,"  repeated  the  chief  to  his  gang,  pronouncing 
the  words  very  correctly.  The'  natives  looked  irreso- 
lute ;  but  the  chief  decided. 

"  Two  bottles— little." 

"  We  had  better  make  a  pretence  bf  going,"  said  the 
farmer  ;  "  then,  perhaps,  they'll  agree." 

"  Two  bottles  much.     Good  bye." 

"  Good  bye,"  said  all  the  natives  together. 

"  Why  they  seem  all  to  talk  English,"  said  I. 

"  They've  all  caught  that  word  up.  But  we  must 
have  that  old  fellow  to  help  us.  Confound  him  !  But, 
however,  I  can  water  the  rum,  that's  something." 

Turning  around,  we  observed  the  natives  still  looking 
at  us,  as  if  waiting  for  a  last  bid. 

"  Three  bottles,"  said  the  New  Norfolk  man,  holding 
up  three  fingers.     ''  Three  big  bottles  of  rum." 

We  were  turning  round  to  continue  our  way,  when 
the  black  negotiator,  concluding  that  he  had  now  arrived 
at  the  limit  of  the  reward,  called  out — 


58         The  Bargain  Concluded. 

"  Tree  bottle— good  !" 

"We  stood  still  upon  this ;  and  presently  four  or  five 
of  the  men  joined  us.  A  consultation  now  took  place 
between  them,  and  after  some  considering,  the  chief 
pushed  forward  a  young  slim  native. 

"  Good,"  said  he  ;  "  find  sheep." 

The  farmer  not  approving  of  this  substitution,  shook 
his  head. 

*'  Pickaninny  not  good  to  find  sheep.  You,"  point- 
ing to  the  chief,  ''  you  go." 

"  No  go — gins  !" 

''Ah,"  said  my  friend;  "he  says  he  can't  leave  his 
gins.  Well,  I  suppose  we  must  take  the  young  one. 
Come." 

The  young  native  immediately  stepped  forward.  He 
was  completely  naked.  The  weather,  to  be  sure,  was 
very  warm.  His  hair  was  woolly  and  frizzled;  his 
limbs  clean  and  straight ;  but  his  whole  body  was  very 
slender,  with  the  exception  of  that  portion  of  his  person 
which  served  as  a  receptacle  for  the  opossums  and  gum- 
baUs  with  which  he  had  recently  regaled  himself.  I 
could  not  help  remarking  on  its  extraordinary  protu- 
berance. 

"  These  chaps  are  made  to  carry  a  good  lot  of  proven- 
der," said  I. 

"  They  do  eat  enormously,"  said  my  companion.  "  Per- 
haps it  is,  that,  as  their  food  is  very  precarious,  they  think 
it  prudent  to  lay  in  a  good  stock  when  they  can  get  it ; 
and  so  it  swells  'cm  out  a  bit.  But  which  way  is  the 
fellow  taKmg  us  ?  Why,  he's  going  back  again.  Ah  !  I 
see  he's  going  back  for  the  first  track.  Well,  he  knows 
what  he's  about;  that's  some  encouragement.     Look — 


S  E  A  R  C  II    C  0  M  M  E  N  C  E  D  .  59 

be's  going  to  speak.  No ;  he  can't  do  that.  But  I  un- 
derstand him  •  he  wants  to  know  whore  the  sheep  were 
driven  from.  Let  me  see — where  are  we  ?  Oh  !  there 
lies  the  farm,  over  that  little  hill."  "  There,"  said  he, 
speaking  to  the  native — "  sheep  there" — and  throwing 
his  arm  away  from  it — "  gone  ?" 

The  native  considered  a  few  moments,  and  then  without 
any  attempt  to  make  his  intention  understood,  led  the 
way  over  a  low  hill  that  was  to  our  left. 

"  This  win  bring  us  near  the  place  where  we  appointed 
to  meet  the  shepherd  and  your  friend,"  said  the  New 
Norfolk  man;  "  they  will  be  wondering  what  has  become 
of  us." 

While  he  was  speaking,  we  heard  a  distant  sound,  as 
of  some  one  hallooing,  but  with  a  cadence  that  was 
strange  to  me.  The  peculiar  mode  of  the  country — 
whether  hit  on  by  accident,  or  scientifically  designed,  I 
know  not — of  throwing  the  voice  to  a  distance  in  tbe 
bush,  was  new  to  me ;  but  I  qpuld  make  out  the  sounds 
easily  enough.    "  Coo-oo-ee  !" 

"  That's  Dick  and  your  friend,"  said  the  farmer ;  "  they 
think  we  have  missed  tliem,  and  they  are  trying  the 
chance  of  our  hearing  them  coo-ee.    I'll  answer  them." 

With  that  he  put  his  hands  to  his  mouth,  and  replied 
with  a  loud  and  shrill  "  Coo-ee  ?"  His  cry  was  answered, 
and,  standing  still,  the  native  seeming  perfectly  to  under- 
stand the  reason  of  the  proceeding,  presently  two  dogs 
came  bounding  towards  us  through  the  trees ;  and  in  a 
little  time,  the  buU^y  form  of  my  kangaroo-skin  friend. 
Crab,  and  the  blue  jacket  of  the  shepherd  were  visible  to 
us  in  the  distance.     They  soon  joined  us. 

"What  luck?"  said  the  farmer. 


60  Follow  OUR   Leader. 

''I  think  I've  found  the  tracks,"  said  the  shepherd; 
"but  I  suppose  we  shall  be  sure  now,  as  I  see  you've  got 
one  of  the  natives  to  guide  you.  I  saw  a  smoke  over  the 
hills,  and  thought  it  was  likely  there  was  a  mob  of  'em 
about.  "Well,  master,  we  had  better  put  the  black  fellow 
on  the  track  that  I've  found,  and  then  he  can  go  right 
ahead." 

The  black  man,  however,  refused  to  proceed  in  any 
other  than  his  own  way,  and  continued  to  lead  us  straight 
to  some  spot  that  he  seemed  to  have  fixed  on  as  a  favour- 
able starting  point. 

"  I  suppose  we  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  follow  him  ?" 
said  the  shepherd. 

"  Follow  him  !"  said  Crab,  who  had  hitherto  continued 
silent.  "  Follow  him  !  Now,  isn't  it  a  pretty  thing  to 
see  us  following  a  black  fellow,  to  find  a  whole  flock  of 
sheep  that's  been  driven  off  in  the  night?  Here's  a  coun- 
try to  live  in !  A  man  lies  down  in  his  bed  with  a  flock 
of  sheep  in  his  yard,  and  when  he  gets  up  the  next  morn- 
ing he  finds  all  his  sheep  driven  off  the  Lord  knows 
where  !  And  then  he  must  get  a  blaqk  fellow  to  find 
them  for  him  !  Well,  if  this  won't  make  a  man  sick  of 
the  country,  I  don't  know  what  will.  What  do  you  think 
of  it,  master?"  turning  to  me ;  "you  came  out  to  look  for 
land,  and  now  you  are  looking  for  sheep;  and  you'll  find 
about  as  much  of  one  as  the  other,  I'm  thinking." 

It  was  very  odd — but  I  must  confess  the  truth,  the 
excitement  that  had  taken  possession  of  me  had  put  out 
of  my  head  my  own  particular  business,  that  of  looking 
for  a  piece  of  land  to  settle  on ;  and  I  found  myself  em- 
barked in  an  expedition  with  the  New  Norfolk  settler 
after  his  lost  sheep,  with  as  much  keenness  and  eagerness 


ISeet HE  Country.  oi 

as  if  it  was  an  affair  of  my  own ;  so  apt  arc  we  all  to  bo 
acted  on  more  by  the  pressing  and  immediate  circuai- 
stancc  than  by  the  distant  consideration.  But  I  felt  1 
was  in  for  it,  for  better  or  worse,  and  that  I  was  bound 
in  honour  to  go  through  with  it.  I  could  not  help,  how- 
ever, letting  the  thoughts  that  came  across  me  break  out 
iu  words  to  my  New  Norfolk  acquaintance. 

"  Well,"  said  I,  "  I  did  not  contemplate  this  sort  of 
fun  when  I  came  to  New  Norfolk ;  I  came  to  look  for 
laud,  and  now,  it  seems,  I'm  turned  sheep-hunter — or 
sheep-finder ;  but  I  suppose  this  is  a  part  of  the  usual 
adventurous  life  of  a  settler  ?" 

"  I'll  tell  you  what,  my  friend,"  said  the  farmer,  "I  am 
much  obliged  to  you  for  your  company  and  assistance 
in  this  matter,  and  the  more  so,  because  it  was  done 
readily  and  good  naturedly  ;  but  if  you  want  to  see  the 
country,  you  could  not  have  a  better  opportunity  than 
this ;  for  you  are  very  certain  to  be  led  a  pretty  dance 
before  we  have  done,  and  that  over  parts  of  the  country 
that  neither  you  nor  I  perhaps  would  think  of  penetrating 
into,  unless  compelled  by  the  necessity  of  following  the 
track.  So  don't  suppose  you  are  losing  time ;  rather 
you  are  gaining  time,  for  you  are  seeing,  if  you  will 
make  use  of  your  eyes,  more  of  the  country  than  most 
strangers  do." 

"  Well,"  said  I,  "  I  was  told  before  I  set  out,  that 
a  settler's  life  was  one  of  adventure ;  and  this  is  a  pretty 
good  beginning." 

We  had  now  arrived  at  the  margin  of  a  little  rivulet, 
of  which  there  are  many  in  this  country,  a  foot  or  two 
broad,  and  of  the  depth  of  a  few  inches  only.  The 
native  paused  here,  and  seemed  to  ponder  for  a  while. 


62    Crab  Grumbles  at  the  Chase, 

Not  being  used  to  tlie  bush,  I  had  no  notion  where  we 
were,  and  I  felt,  for  the  first  time,  how  easily  those 
unaccustomed  to  the  bush  get  bewildered.  There  was 
the  sun  to  go  by,  to  be  sure,  and  we  could  see  it — and 
feel  it  too.  But  wandering  in  the  bush,  and  becoming 
lost  in  it,  seems  to  produce  some  specific  emotion  of  the 
mind,  by  which  the  faculties  become  actually  stupefied 
and  the  wits  lost.  But  I  shall  have  to  speak  of  this  in 
another  place.  The  black  fellow  soon  made  up  his 
mind;  pointing  backwards  and  shaking  his  head,  to 
signify  that  the  sheep  were  not  in  that  direction,  he 
continued  his  way  to  the  left,  keeping  near  the  little 
rivulet,  and  searching,  as  I  observed  by  his  eye,  for  the 
tracks  of  the  sheep.  We  continued  in  this  line  for  some 
miles,  till  we  began  to  feel  tired.     CKib  called  a  halt. 

"  This  seems  to  be  rather  a  wild  goose  chase.  Here 
we  have  followed  this  black  rascal  for  I  don't  know  how 
many  miles,  and  not  the  tail  of  a  sheep  have  we  seen — 
and  in  my  opinion  never  shall;  for  I'm  quite  sure 
he's  only  leading  us  to  a  proper  place  for  a  mob  of  these 
devils  to  set  on  us,  and  devour  us — the  Lord  help  us  ! 
To  think  that  this  should  be  the  end  of  my  mother's 
son !  To  be  eaten  up  by  those  black  villains — just 
chucked  on  the  fire,  and  before  we're  half  done,  to  have 
them  set  their  teeth  in  us.  Well,  to  be  sure  I  master, 
what  do  you  think  of  it  ?  I'm  for  going  back  again 
before  it  comes  to  worse." 

"  Go  back!"  said  the  shepherd;  "never  think  of  it. 
We  must  come  on  the  tracks  some  time.  Why  ?  you 
would  never  go  back  without  the  sheep  !  Three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  sheep  must  leave  their  marks  behind 
them." 


The  Track  Discovered.  63 

"  But  they  don't,"  said  Crab. 

"  Come  on,"  said  the  farmer,  motioning  to  the  native 
to  move  forward.  "  It  would  be  a  pretty  joke  to  go 
back  without  any  of  the  flock.  Ah  !  the  black  fellow 
has  got  scent  of  them — see,  he  is  pointing  to  something 
on  the  ground." 

We  now  hastily  followed  the  native,  who,  after  rapidly 
continuing  on  the  track,  suddenly  stopped,  and  seemed 
to  require  some  information,  which  he  did  not  know  how 
to  ask  for. 

"Go  to  him,  Dick,"  said  the  farmer;  "you  know 
their  ways  better  than  we  do.  Try  to  make  out  what 
he  wants." 

The  shepherd  approached  the  native.  The  native 
pointed  to  the  tracks. 

"  Sheep,"  said  he. 

"  Sheep,  sure  enough,"  said  the  shepherd ;  "  but  he 
means  something  that  I  can't  make  out." 

The  native  now,  throwing  his  arms  about  so  as  to  de- 
scribe a  large  space  of  land,  said  in  an  inquiring  tone, 
"Sheep?  sheep?  sheep?" 

"  Ah !"  said  Dick,  "  I  see  what  he's  at  now ;  he  wants 
to  know  if  there  were  many  sheep ;  he  has  come  upon 
fresh  tracks,  but  only  of  a  few,  and  he  fears  being  led 
away  after  the  wi'ong  lot."  "Many,"  said  he  to  the 
native ;  "  little,"  pointing  to  the  present  tracks  and 
shaking  his  head.  The  native,  it  seems,  understood  him, 
for  he  immediately  turned  oflf  at  an  angle  to  his  left,  and 
in  about  a  couple  of  miles  we  crossed  the  track  of  a  num- 
ber of  sheep,  which  wc  now  found  had  been  driven  paral- 
lel to  the  river  for  some  distance ;  the  shecp-stealers  then 
turned  sharply  to  the  left,  and  crossed  a  part  of  the  river 


64  A  Dilemma. 

wliere  it  was  easily  fordable.  On  the  other  side  of  the 
river  the  tracks  were  phain  and  fresh,  and  we  proceeded  at 
a  rapid  pace  in  pursuit.  "We  continued  our  course  for 
several  miles,  when  the  tracks  suddenly  assumed  the 
appearance  of  a  fork,  part  towards  the  right  and  part 
towards  the  left. 

In  this  dilemma  it  was  resolved  that  the  farmer,  with 
the  shepherd  and  the  native,  should  proceed  to  the  left, 
and  that  I  and  Crab  should  follow  the  track  to  the  right, 
and  act  according  to  circumstances.  To  this  arrange- 
ment Crab  made  no  objection,  as  there  was  "  as  good  a 
chance,"  he  said,  "  of  finding  them  one  way  as  another, 
although  he  had  no  doubt  they  had  been  driven  away  by 
this  time  where  nobody  would  find  them ;  and  if  they 
were  found,  so  changed  that  nobody  could  know  them, 
as  they  would  be  all  fresh  marked  and  firebranded." 
And  so  we  parted  on  our  respective  expeditions. 

I  afterwards  learned  that  the  New  Norfolk  man  reco- 
vered nearly  all  his  sheep,  but  I  shall  not  stop  here  to 
relate  the  particulars.  I  want  to  show  how  I  got  on  my 
farm,  and  by  what  means  a  settler  arrives  through  diffi- 
culties and  dangers  to  independence  and  fortune. 

"Well,  master,"  said  Crab,  "  you  have  seen  something 
of  the  country  now;  what  do  you  think  of  it?" 

"It's  a  beautiful  country  to  look  at,"  said  I;  "but 
beauty  of  scenery  is  one  thing,  and  goodness  of  land  is 
another.  A  settler  can't  live  on  a  fine  prospect;  he  must 
get  his  living  out  of  the  fatness  of  the  soil  under  his 
foot;  but  just  at  this  moment.  Master  Crab,"  continued 
I,  "  I  would  rather  look  on  a  good  breakfast  than  any- 
thing else." 

"In  that  case,"  said  Crab,  stopping  and  speaking 
softly,  "you  have  a  chance  of  something — look  there, 


Chase  a  Kangaroo.  65 

just  over  that  log  of  a  tree — don't  you  sec  his  head  ? 
It's  a  brush  kangaroo.  There,  he's  hopping  ofiF;  now 
you've  a  good  shot  at  him." 

I  fired,  and  the  animal  gave  a  bound  forward. 

"You've  hit  him,"  said  Crab;  and,  tired  as  we  were, 
we  set  off  at  a  run  after  the  wounded  kangaroo. 

The  animal,  however,  hopped  away  at  an  amazing  rate, 
and  it  continued  its  course  for  more  than  a  mile  before  it 
fell.  Crab  quickly  cut  it  up,  and  lighting  a  fire  of  the 
dead  wood  which  lay  in  plenty  about,  we  made  a  bush 
brcakfost  and  dinner  all  in  one.  The  water  of  a  spring 
close  by  supplied  drink  j  and  Crab  armed  himself  with  the 
tail  of  the  defunct,  as  a  supply,  as  he  said,  against  acci- 
dents. 

The  chase  of  the  kangaroo  caused  us  to  lose  the  track 
of  the  sheep,  and  Crab  proposed  that  wc  should  cross 
over  the  country  till  we  came  to  the  high  road  uniting 
the  two  extremities  of  the  island.  I  assented  to  this 
scheme,  and  after  a  toilsome  march  of  thirty  hours,  we 
found  ourselves  on  the  main  road.  A  settler's  bullock- 
cart  fortunately  was  proceeding  to  Norfolk  Plains,  on  the 
northern  side  of  the  island.  We  availed  ourselves  of  its 
convenience ;  and  partly  riding  and  partly  walking,  we 
arrived  at  the  layge  tract  of  level  land  known  by  that 
name.  From  thence  we  proceeded  to  Launceston,  and 
returning  by  the  high  road,  we  arrived  at  a  place  called 
"Green  Ponds,"  in  the  district  of  Murray.  Here,  at  a 
littre  public  house,  newly  set  up,  I  heard  of  a  tract  of 
country  lying  westward,  on  the  banks  of  the  Clyde,  par- 
ticularly suitable  for  cattle  and  sheep  feeding,  which  was 
the  line  I  had  a  mind  to  follow.  I  crossed  over,  with  the 
persevering  Crab,  and  lighted  on  a  spot,  which  pleased 
5 


66        I  Find  Land  TO  Please  Me. 

me  at  once,  from  the  back  run  for  sheep  and  cattle  which 
it  afforded. 

Having  fixed  on  my  land,  I  hastened  back  to  Hobart 
Town,  that  I  might  be  the  first  to  apply  for  it.  I  had 
been  away  seventeen  days,  and  it  was  with  not  a  little 
delight  that  I  saw  my  wife  and  children  again,  for  I 
seemed  to  have  been  absent  a  much  longer  time.  The 
very  next  day  I  got  an  order  from  the  governor  to  take 
possession ;  and  I  was  informed  the  land  would  be  regu- 
larly surveyed  and  marked  out  for  me  by  the  govern- 
ment surveyor,  as  soon  as  his  engagements  would  per- 
mit, and  that  in  the  meantime  I  might  take  possession 
and  erect  my  buildings.  My  next  care  was  to  provide 
myself  with  two  bullock-carts,  and  two  teams  of  four 
bullocks  each,  to  carry  up  such  utensils  and  things  as 
were  absolutely  necessary. 

On  consulting  with  my  wife,  I  found  that  she  prefei- 
red  going  on  the  land  with  me  at  once,  with  the  children, 
to  staying  in  the  town  until  I  had  got  some  accommoda- 
tion for  her.  Fortunately  we  had  brought  out  with  us 
two  good  tents,  one  a  pretty  large  one ;  these  served  us 
in  good  stead.  We  were  in  a  pretty  bustle,  it  may  be 
supposed,  packing  up  and  getting  ready  for  our  journey. 
It  was  about  fifty  miles  from  the  town  to  the  spot  I  had 
chosen.  All  our  goods  and  traps  being  ready — and  hav- 
ing had  assigned  to  me  two  government  men,  a  bullock- 
driver,  and  a  farming-man — my  wife,  her  children,  and 
her  mother,  occupying  one  cart,  with  the  woman  ser- 
vant, and  all  sorts  of  articles  for  bedding  and  use ;  and 
the  other  cart  being  filled  with  utensils,  and  tools,  and 
provisions,  we  commenced  our  journey  on  the  26th  of 
February,  1817,  with  anxious  thoughts,  but  full  of 
spirits  and  of  hope,  for  the  river  Clyde. 


Cljn|itrr  liitlj. 


Journey  np  the  Country  with  Family,  Bullock-carts,  and  Crab — A 
Steep  Hill — A  Night  in  the  Bush — Arrives  at  his  Land — His 
First  Chop  at  a  Gum  Tree. 

It  is  more  than  twenty-one  years  since  I  set  out  on 
this  memorable  journey,  but  the  whole  scene  is  present 
to  me  as  if  it  was  an  affair  of  yesterday ;  and  I  remem- 
ber well  my  sensations  at  the  sight  of  my  wife  perched 
on  the  top  of  a  feather  bed  in  a  bullock-cart,  with  her 
old  mother  sitting  beside  her,  and  the  children  higgledy- 
piggledy  about  her,  enjoying  the  novelty  and  the  fun  of 
being  dragged  by  bullocks  in  a  cart.  There  was  some- 
thing so  droll  in  the  set-out,  and  at  the  same  time  the 
occasion  was  so  serious,  that  my  poor  wife  did  not  know 
whether  to  laugh  or  to  cry ;  but  the  tumblings  that  the 
roughness  of  the  road  gave  the  children  soon  made  them 
merry  enough,  and  their  joyous  mirth  set  the  rest  of  the 
party  a-laughing,  so  that  the  journey  was  a  merry  one — 
in  the  beginning  at  least.  The  old  lady  sat  very  quietly 
in  her  place,  a  little  frightened,  but  resigned  to  her  fate. 
She  owned,  afterwards,  that  she  never  expected  to  get  to 
the  end  of  the  journey  alive  by  such  an  outlandish  sort 
of  conveyance,  and  she  was  like  to  be  right  in  her  fore- 
bodings, at  one  time. 

We  got  on  very  well  till  wc  arrived  at  the  ferry,  for 
many  years  known  as  Stocker's  Ferry,  about  nine  miles 
from  camp.     The  bullocks  behaved  admirably.     These 

(67) 


68         Journey  to  our  New  House. 

were  all  fine  animals.  I  gave  forty  pounds  a  pair  for 
two  pair.  The  other  two  pair  I  got  for  thirty-five  pounds 
a  pair;  but  one  of  the  bullocks  was  rather  old  and 
weak,  but  a  steady  worker,  and  a  prime  fellow  to  break 
in  the  young  ones ;  it  seemed  to  me  he  took  a  pleasure 
in  it.  Bob,  who  lived  with  me  for  many  years  after- 
wards, had  the  honour  of  conducting  the  principal  team, 
the  first  cart  being  committed  to  the  care  of  my  other 
servant.  I  walked,  helping  the  one  or  the  other,  as  the 
occasion  happened,  with  Will,  my  eldest  boy,  now  nearly 
ten  years  old,  for  my  companion.  We  had  not  gone 
more  than  a  mile  from  the  town,  when  we  heard  some  one 
calling  after  us,  and  who  should  it  be  but  Crab,  who 
joined  us,  terribly  out  of  breath,  and  with  an  uncertain 
expression  of  countenance  which  represented  an  odd  ap- 
pearance of  habitual  sourness  and  present  concern,  which 
induced  me  to  stop  the  whole  cavalcade  for  a  moment, 
wondering  what  could  be  the  matter. 

"Well,  Mr.  Crab,"  said  I,  "  nothing  wrong,  I  hope  ?" 

"  Nothing  wrong  yet  that  I  see,"  said  Crab ;  "  but 
I'm  thinking,  master,"  said  he,  hesitatingly,  "you're 
rather  short-handed  for  what  you're  about.  You  see, 
when  one  of  the  bullock-carts  turns  over,  you'll  hardly 
be  strong  enough  to  set  it  on  its  legs  again.  .  .  ." 

"  Oh,  gracious  !  Mr.  Crab/'  said  my  wife,  "  don't 
make  things  worse  than  they  are ;  you  will  always  look 
on  the  worst  side  so." 

"  Why,  ma'am,"  said  Crab,  trying  to  look  gracious, 
"I  don't  like  to  frighten  the  ladies;  but  it's  always  best 
to  be  prepared  for  what's  to  happen,  then  when  it  cornea 
it  isn't  so  bad.  So  I  thought  I  might  be  able  to  hcip 
you  a  bit,  as  I'm  used  to  the  ways  of  the  country,  and 


Crab  Overtakes  Us.  G9 

see  you  safe  on  your  land;  and  I  don't  doubt  that  when 
you  get  there,  you'll  be  glad  enough  to  get  back  again ; 
and  then  it  would  be  a  consolation  to  me  to  see  you  safe 
in  the  town  again,  and  aboard  ship,  so  that  you  may  go 
away  home  from  this  horrible  place,  which  it's  a  shame 
to  entice  people  to — poor,  deceived,  wretched,  miserable 
creatures !  Besides,  I've  taken  a  sort  of  liking  to  your 
good  man  here,  and  the  long  and  the  short  of  it  is,  if 
you  like,  I'll  go  along  with  you  to  your  land,  and  lend 
you  a  help,  for  you'll  want  it  bad  enough.  What  do 
you  say  to  it,  master  ?" 

There  was  a  real  good  and  honest  feeling  in  the  man, 
which,  in  spite  of  the  rough  husk  that  covered  it,  had 
given  me  a  liking  for  him,  and  I  readily  agreed  to  his 
proposal ;  telling  him  that  I  was  heartily  glad  of  such  a 
valuable  addition  to  our  company.  He  gave  a  nod,  to 
intimate  that  he  considered  the  social  compact  as  con- 
cluded, and  then  eagerly  relapsed  into  his  accustomed 
sourness  and  sarcasm.  He  immediately  began  to  com- 
plain of  the  state  of  the  roads,  of  their  ruts  and  unc- 
venness. 

"Did  ever  mortal  man,"  said  he,  "conceive  the 
stupidity  of  these  road-makers  ?  Here  they  take  you 
right  over  the  hill,  when  it  would  have  been  no  further, 
and  much  easier,  to  go  round  it.  But  no — the  road 
must  be  carried  in  a  straight  line,  9,nd  so  the  poor  cattle 
must  be  murdered  in  dragging  their  loads  over  it.  And 
then  look  at  the  stumps  of  trees  left  in  the  middle  of 
the  road.  A  nice  place,  isn't  it,  for  a  gentleman  to 
travel  in  ?" 

"  But  you  can't  expect,"  said  I,  "  to  find  things  in  ^ 
new  country  all  ready  made  to  your  hand ;  there  must 
be  a  beginning  to  everything." 


70   Progress  on  the  Journey. 

"  Then  why  do  you  come  to  a  new  country  ?  Why 
can't  you  wait  till  it's  an  old  one,  and  fit  for  Christians 
to  live  in  ?  Not  that  this  place  will  ever  be  fit  for  any- 
thing to  live  in  but  a  convict  or  a  kangaroo." 

By  this  time  we  had  arrived  at  Stocker's  Ferry. 

''  What  do  you  intend  to  do  now  ?"  said  Crab. 

"  Cross  the  ferry." 

"How?" 

"  How !  why  in  the  ferry  boat,  to  be  sure." 

"  You'll  be  capsized — bullocks,  carts,  and  all." 

"  We  must  take  our  chance  of  that." 

After  a  good  deal  of  trouble,  we  crossed  ovov  safe. 

"Well,  Crab,  that  job's  done  well,"  said  I. 

"  Better  the  other  way,  and  so  saved  worse,"  said 
Crab ;  "  but,  however,  as  we  are  on  this  side,  heaveu 
help  us !  we  had  better  get  on  to  where  there  is  water 
for  the  bullocks,  for  they  begin  to  be  distressed  in  the 
heat  of  the  day.  They'll  never  be  able  to  get  these  loads 
to  the  end  of  the  journey;  that's  my  opinion." 

With  these  pleasing  prognostications  as  an  accompani- 
ment to  our  toil,  we  reached  Brighton  Plains,  where  we 
made  a  halt,  in  a  sheltered  spot,  by  the  side  of  a  little 
stream,  and  let  loose  the  bullocks  to  graze.  Crab  assured 
us  that  we  might  make  up  our  minds  to  stay  where  we 
were  for  some  weeks,  or  days  at  least,  as  the  bullocks 
would  be  sure  to  stray  away  into  the  bush. 

We  laughed  at  his  talk ;  and  the  children,  glad  to  be 
released  from  the  confinement  of  the  cart,  made  the  little 
valley  ring  with  their  shrieks  and  their  merriment.  My 
wife  was  as  merry  as  any  of  them ;  and  the  old  lady  was 
pleased  to  have  proceeded  so  far,  and  to  have  accom- 
j^lished  the  much  dreaded  crossing  of  the  river  without 


ANianTONTHERoAD.  71 

accident.  I  tliouglit  even  the  furrows  of  Crab's  rugged 
features  once  or  twice  nearly  relaxed  into  a  smile,  as  bo 
witnessed  the  frolicsome  mirth  of  the  cbiklrenj  but  he 
shook  his  head  with  much  gravity — "Ah/'  said  he, 
"poor  things!  let  them  enjoy  themselves;  they  little 
know  what's  in  store  for  'em." 

We  now  called  a  council  of  war,  and  it  was  determined 
to  wait  till  the  cool  of  the  evening,  and  then  make  a 
vigorous  push  for  the  Green  Ponds,  where  a  little  public 
house  had  been  recently  established.  We  arrived  there 
just  at  dark ;  and  as  the  house  was  small,  and  the  night 
fine  and  warm,  we  preferred  passing  the  night  under  our 
tents,  which  were  quickly  set  up.  We  secured  the  bul- 
locks in  a  small  stock-yard,  close  by  the  little  inn ;  and 
with  the  exception  of  Crab,  the  whole  party  was  soon 
fast  asleep.  That  indefatigable  individual  insisted  that 
we  should  be  attacked  by  the  bush-rangers ;  and  he  re- 
mained therefore  on  watch  to  give  the  alarm. 

Nothing  occurred,  however ;  and  by  four  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  we  were  all  a-foot,  and  ready  to  start.  We 
proceeded  in  due  order  for  about  four  miles  on  the  high 
road.  We  had  then  to  turn  to  the  left,  westward,  on  our 
way  to  the  place  of  our  destination.  Crossing  the  nar- 
row river  Jordan  at  an  awkward  ford,  which  would  have 
been  of  difficult  accomplishment  at  any  other  than  the 
summer  season,  we  continued  our  way  with  much  pre- 
caution, as  there  was  no  marlctid  road,  and  the  track  was 
not  always  very  plain. 

After  a  few  miles  progress,  we  arrived  at  the  foot  of 
the  Den  Hill — part  of  a  ridge  of  mountainous  hills,  ex- 
tending to  the  left.  On  the  right  was  a  smiling  valley, 
watered  by  a  little  stream.     The  appearance  of  the  ascent 


72  Ascent  of  a  Perpendicular  Llil^ 

before  us  was  very  formidable ;  it  is  not  very  much  better 
now  ;  but  at  that  time  the  country  was  little  known,  and 
an  untravelled  road  always  appears,  the  first  time,  longer 
and  worse  than  it  is.  Here  we  made  another  halt,  to 
gather  up  courage  to  face  the  ascent,  and  to  recruit  the 
strength  of  the  cattle  and  their  drivers.  Crab  looked  at 
the  hill  covered  with  a  thick  mass  of  trees,  and  without 
any  visible  opening,  and  then  at  the  carts  and  bullocks, 
with  a  very  long  face.  I  confess  I  had  some  misgivings 
myself.  I  had  gone  over  the  hill  before,  when  I  went 
to  look  at  the  land  at  the  Clyde ',  but  going  over  such  a 
hill  on  foot,  and  sm-mounting  it  with  laden  carts,  are  two 
very  different  things. 

As  we  discussed  some  bread  and  meat  on  the  grass, 
we  were  all  very  serious,  even  the  children  regarding  the 
black,  dense  mass  of  trees  rising  one  above  another  be- 
fore us  with  fearfulness  and  perplexity.  We  turned  to 
Crab  instinctively,  expecting  to  hear  from  him  some  of 
his  usual  evil  prognostications.  But  he  preserved  a 
rigid  silence,  stuffing  huge  pieces  of  damper  into  his 
mouth,  with  a  diligence  and  perseverance  that  seemed  to 
imply  he  was  doubtful  when  he  might  have  the  chance 
of  doing  so  again,  and  enjoying  maliciously,  I  was  in- 
clined to  think,  the  novel  disappointment  of  his  unusual 
taciturnity. 

At  last,  seeing  that  the  thing  must  be  done,  I  shook 
off  the  lethargic  feeling  "which  fatigue,  the  heat,  and 
apparently  insurmountable  difficulties  before  us  had  cast 
over  me,  and  I  braced  myself  up  for  the  effort.  "We  got 
on  pretty  well  for  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  but  the 
steepness  of  the  way  and  the  impediments  of  the  dead 
timber,  lying  on  all  sides  about,  brought  us  to  a  stand- 


H  A  L  T    11  A  L  r  -  W  A  Y    U  P  .  To 

Btill.  Putting  pieces  of  wood  behiod  the  wliecls  of  the 
carts,  to  prevent  their  rolling  backwards,  we  looked 
inquiriuu'ly  at  one  another.  It  seemed  a  hopeless  task. 
Crab  said  nothing.  The  men  looked  at  the  bullocks 
dcspairingl}'. 

"  It's  more  than  mortal  cattle  can  do,"  said  Bob,  who 
had  shown  himself  a  civil  and  diligent  fellow;  "you 
miffht  as  well  attempt  to  climb  up  the  walls  of  a  honse." 

I  thought  so  too,  but  I  took  care  to  keep  my  thoughts 
to  myself.  I  was  puzzled  to  know  what  to  do  ;  and  the 
evening  was  drawing  in,  and  the  clear  light  failing  us, 
though  at  that  time  of  the  year  the  nights  are  never 
quite  dark  in  Van  Diemen's  Land.  In  this  difiiculty 
my  wife  came  to  our  aid. 

''  If  four  bullocks  cannot  draw  one  cart  up  the  hill, 
why  not  put  the  whole  eight  on,  and  draw  one  cart  up 
at  a  time  ?" 

It  was  like  Columbus's  egg;  nothing  more  easy  when 
it  was  done.  In  a  trice  we  unharnessed  the  provision 
cart.  Crab  lending  himself  with  alacrity  and  energy  to 
the  movement ;  and  with  prodigious  labour,  and  the 
exhaustion  of  the  whole  party,  we  succeeded,  after  two 
hours'  work,  in  dragging  the  cart,  with  my  wife  and 
children,  to  the  summit  of  this  terrible  hill.  It  was 
now  nearly  dark,  and  we  had  left  the  provision-cart 
about  a  mile  behind  us,  and  the  animals  were  too  much 
exhausted  to  render  further  attempts  possible.  Under 
these  circumstances,  we  were  obliged  to  pass  the  night, 
as  it  were,  under  arms,  with  the  bullocks  yoked  and 
chain*^d,  for  we  were  afraid  to  let  them  wander  to  feed, 
not  knowing  the  country.  Crab  volunteered  to  mount 
guard  over  the  cart  below,  and  to  keep  up  a  good  fire  to 


71:  A  R  R  I  V  E    A  T     T  n  E     F  A  R  M  . 

point  out  his  whereabouts.  We  did  the  same ;  and  in 
this  way  we  passed  the  night,  not  very  commodiously ; 
but  the  genial  warmth  of  the  season,  and  the  brilliant 
fineness  of  the  night,  reconciled  us  to  our  rough  lodg- 
ment, and  as  we  had  plenty  of  covering  for  the  children, 
they  slept  soundly,  and  all  passed  off  well. 

At  the  first  sign  of  light  we  were  stirring.  We  had 
to  pursue  the  same  process  to  get  up  our  provision-cart, 
when  we  made  a  hearty  breakfast,  and  not  the  less  so 
from  having  gone  without  our  supper.  Our  way  was 
now  all  downhill  by  a  gentle  inclination  ;  and  sometimes 
following  the  foint  track,  and  sometimes  guided  by  the 
notched  trees,  and  making  our  way  over  the  dead  timber 
and  through  the  bushes  as  well  as  we  could,  we  arrived 
in  about  a  couple  of  hours  at  the  site  of  my  future  farm. 

It  was  now  noon.  The  sun  was  intensely  hot,  and  we 
very  tired,  bullocks  and  all ;  but  we  had  arrived  safe, 
and  we  felt  in  spirits.  And  here  we  were,  our  little 
party,  alone  in  the  wilderness.  To  the  west  there  was 
no  human  habitation  between  us  and  the  sea ;  and  the 
nearest  settler's  residence  was  not  less  than  eighteen 
miles.  There  was  pasturage  for  sheep  and  cattle  for 
scores  and  scores  of  miles,  and  no  one  to  interfere 
with  them.  But  I  had  not  yet  a  single  sheep,  nor 
a  single  head  of  cattle,  except  my  eight  working  bul- 
locks. We  turned  them  out  to  graze  on  the  plain  before 
us,  through  which  ran  the  Clyde,  then  better  known 
by  the  name  of  the  Fat  Doe  lliver ;  we  had  no  fear  of 
their  straying,  for  they  were  tired  enough  with  their 
journey.  The  two  men  then  set  up  the  tents  without, 
bidding. 

I  remember  T  sat  on  u  fallen  tree,  with  ray  wife  and 


UiNLOADourGoods.  75 

children  and  her  mother  stretched  on  the  ground  in  the 
shade,  for  some  time  absorbed  in  thoughts  of  mingled 
pain  and  pleasure.  Crab  had  strolled  into  the  bush.  It 
was  a  brilliant  day.  There  was  a  solemn  stilkess 
around  that  was  imposing;  the  sun  shining  gloriously 
in  the  heavens,  and  the  prospect  around  most  calm  and 
beautiful.  I  felt  melancholy.  Thoughts  crowded  thick 
upon  me.  I  had  undertaken  a  vast  task,  to  establish  a 
home  in  the  wilderness.  The  first  stage  of  my  enter- 
prise I  had  accomplished ;  through  toil,  and  labour,  and 
difficulty,  and  danger ;  but  I  had  accomplished  it.  The 
first  object  was  gained.  I  had  reached  the  land  of  pro- 
mise. I  had  taken  possession  of  my  land,  and  a  noble 
domain  it  was.  IJut  what  were  the  risks  and  difficulties 
that  remained  ?  I  felt  fearful  at  the  work  before  me. 
No  help  near  in  case  of  danger ;  no  medical  assistance ; 
no  neighbour.  I  looked  at  my  wife  and  children  lying 
listlessly  on  the  dry  and  parched  grass ;  I  looked  around 
me,  and  tried  to  penetrate  into  the  obscurity  of  the 
future  and  guess  the  end.  Worn  out  with  thought,  and 
weary  with  travel,  I  insensibly  gave  way  to  the  feeling 
of  lassitude  which  possessed  us  all,  and  fell  asleep  on  the 
grass.  My  wife  would  not  have  me  wakened,  but  taking 
on  herself,  without  hesitation  and  without  delay,  the 
duties  of  a  settler's  wife,  she  silently  gave  directions  for 
unloading  the  carts,  and  preparing  our  canvass  house. 
The  smaller  tent  she  made  the  temporary  storehouse  for 
our  multifarious  goods ;  the  larger  one  was  converted 
into  a  general  bedchamber  for  herself,  her  mother,  and 
the  children.  The  store  tent  was  destined  for  me  to 
sleep  in.  Two  boxes  formed  a  table  on  the  outside,  and 
fitting  logs  of  wood  formed  appropriate  seats.     A  fire 


76      Success   to  the  First  Farm. 

was  kindled  near  the  spot,  and  dinner  got  ready.  It 
was  quite  an  early  settler's  meal ;  boiled  salt  pork  and 
damper,  with  tea  and  brown  sugar,  and  rice  for  the 
children.  All  this  was  prepared  while  I  slept.  I  was 
awakened  by  Crab,  who  had  been  absent  about  a  couple 
of  hours  on  his  exploring  expedition. 

"  Holloa !"  said  he;  "  here's  a  pretty  settler,  to  go  to 
sleep  while  his  wife  works  for  him.  Look  here,  I've  got 
something  for  you." 

I  awoke  at  this,  and  felt  quite  refreshed  and  ready  for 
action.  Crab  displayed  a  brace  of  wild  ducks,  which  pro- 
duced a  general  curiosity  among  the  party.  Without 
stopping  to  ask  questions.  Crab  prepared  them  for  the  spit 
after  his  way.  But  spit  we  had  none,  so  we  contented 
ourselves  with  throwing  them  on  the  hot  embers,  native 
fashion,  and  hooking  them  out  with  the  ramrod  of  one  of 
our  muskets.  We  distributed  them  among  young  and  old 
in  equitable  proportions.  I  had  brought  up  with  me  a 
five  gallon  cask  of  rum,  rather  in  compliance  with  the 
customs  of  the  colony  than  with  my  own  inclination ;  but 
on  this  occasion,  and  to  do  honour  to  the  splendour  of 
our  repast  of  game,  I  served  out  a  moderate  ration  of  it, 
much  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  two  men,  who  were  well 
pleased  at  the  unexpected  libation.  We  soon  got  very 
merry,  and  at  last  felt  so  reconciled  to  our  new  position, 
that  I  caught  myself  proposing  three-times-three  to  the 
success  of  the  First  Farm  on  the  Fat  Doe  Kiver. 

And  now,  having  rested  and  refreshed,  we  all  began  to 
bestir  ourselves  in  earnest  to  our  work.  My  eldest  boy, 
Will,  was  set  to  watch  the  bvdlocks,  to  prevent  their 
straying  too  far.  The  men  busied  themselves  in  erecting 
a  sod  hut  for  themselves  about  a  hundred  yards  from  the 


P  R  E  P  A  K  A  T  I  0  N  S    TO    B  U  I  L  D  .  77 

tents.  Crab  got  out  the  grindstone,  fixed  it  on  a  conve- 
nient stump  of  a  fallen  tree,  and  prepared  the  axes. 
My  first  care  was  to  put  our  fire-arms  in  order,  and  handy 
for  use.  I  had  two  muskets  with  bayonets,  a  fowling- 
piece,  and  two  pair  of  pistols,  one  a  large  pair  of  horse- 
pistols;  I  had  besides  a  yeomanry  broad-sword  and  a 
hanger,  so  that  we  were  tolerably  well  armed.  Crab 
looked  grim  at  my  warlike  preparations. 

''  Ah  I"  said  he,  "  a  pretty  way  of  taking  possession  of 
a  farm,  with  guns  and  blunderbusses,  instead  of  ploughs 
and  harrows.  Well,  to  be  sure;  the  madness  of  the 
people  to  come  to  such  a  place  as  this  to  fight  with  the 
natives  and  the  bush-rangers.  However,  as  you  are  here, 
I  suppose  something  must  be  done  to  get  a  roof  over  your 
heads.  I  have  found  some  capital  timber  not  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  ofi",  that  would  do  to  build  a  log-house.  You'll 
find  that  the  best  thing  you  can  do,  is  to  house  yourself 
comfortably ; — comfortably  !  yes,  pretty  comfort  there  is 
in  the  bush !  we  look  very  comfortable,  don't  we  ?  all 
alone  in  the  wilderness,  without  a  soul  near  us  to  help  us, 
and  not  a  drop  of  beer  to  be  had  for  love  or  money. 
Well,  as  you  have  made  your  bed  you  must  lie  on  it. 
You  are  in  for  it  for  a  while,  and  so  I  suppose  you  must 
make  the  best  of  it." 

With  these  appropriate  and  gratifying  observations,  the 
cross-grained,  but  diligent  Crab,  furnished  himself  with 
the  heaviest  axe  of  the  lot,  and  we  went  together,  to  the 
verge  of  the  forest;  our  encampment  having  been  formed 
on  a  piece  of  ground  nearly  clear  of  timber.  We  eyed 
some  hard  looking  gum  trees  for  a  little  time,  pausing  to 
I  select  those  most  fit  for  our  purpose. 

"  Now,"  said  Crab,  «  who  is  to  strike  the  first  stroke  1" 


78  FellingTrees. 

"  That  will  I  do,"  said  I,  and  fetching  a  blow  at  a  gum 
tree  before  me,  struck  my  axe  in  the  bark. 

"  Well  done  for  a  beginning,"  said  Crab ;  ^'  here  goes 
for  another." 

At  this  he  struck  a  sturdy  stroke  on  the  other  side  of  the 
tree,  but  without  producing  much  impression. 

"  Hard  stuif  this,"  said  Crab.  ''  I'm  thinking  we  have 
harder  work  before  us  than  we  thought  for  !  I  wonder 
how  long  it  will  take  you  and  me  to  cut  down  this  tree  ? 
but  let  us  at  him  again." 

"We  chopped,  and  chopped,  and  sweated,  and  worked 
till  we  were  fairly  exhausted ;  we  made  a  pretty  decent 
gap  on  both  sides,  but  the  tree  gave  no  intimation  of 
coming  down. 

''  This  will  never  do,"  said  I ;  "  there  must  be  some- 
thing wrong  here ;  we  must  not  be  all  day  cutting  down 
one  tree." 

"  Casting  my  eye  on  the  axes  that  lay  on  the  ground, 
it  occurred  to  me  that  the  fault  was  in  the  tools.  We 
had  made  use  of  heavy,  broad  axes,  which  after  experi- 
ence taught  us  were  quite  unfit  for  felling  timber. 

"There's  something  wrong  with  these  axes,"  said  I; 
"  let's  try  the  axes  which  I  bought  in  camp." 

They  were  much  longer  from  heel  to  edge,  and  much 
narrower,  presenting  not  more  than  half  the  breadth  of 
edge  to  the  wood.    The  first  cut  showed  their  superiority. 

"  This  is  the  article,"  said  Crab ;  and  with  that  he  gave 
a  flourish  with  his  axe  in  the  air,  and  shivered  off  a 
prodigious  slice  of  the  obstinate  gum-tree.  We  went  at 
it  merrily,  and  presently  the  tree  began  to  shiver,  and 
suddenly  it  fell  down  with  a  prodigious  crash  to  the 
ground. 


A  New  Kind  of  Assistant!         79 

"That's  number  one,"  said  Crab,  "and  precious  bard 
work  it  is,  I  must  say.  And  this  is  what  we  have  come 
to  t  'other  side  of  the  earth  for  !  to  cut  down  gum  trees  ! 
A  nice  employment  for  middle  aged  gentlemen,  I  must 
say.  I'm  thinking  we  might  have  had  enough  of  this 
pleasure  at  home,  without  coming  so  far  for  it.  How- 
ever, every  one  to  his  mind.  And  now  for  the  next,  mas- 
ter. Here  is  a  good  looking  chap ;  let's  have  a  chop  at 
him." 

''Let  us  try  the  saw,"  said  I ;  "  it's  ready  set,  perhaps 
that  will  do  it  easier." 

"  Any  way,"  said  Crab,  "  so  long  as  we  are  amused. 
I  take  it,  in  about  six  months  at  this  rate,  we  shall  be 
able  to  get  timber  enough  for  a  hut.  But  here's  a  nice 
breeze  got  up.  Oh,  this  is  what  they  call  the  sea-breeze 
that  comes  in  the  afternoon ;  but  sure  we  are  too  far  from 
the  sea  to  feel  it." 

"Well,  never  mind  where  it  comes  from ;  it's  too  plea- 
sant to  be  asked  questions  about.  Upon  my  word  I 
thought  it  was  rather  warmish." 

The  wind  now  rose  so  as  to  bend  the  branches  of  the 
trees,  and  its  grateful  coolness  was  unspeakably  refresh- 
ing, after  the  sultry  heat  of  the  day.  I  saw  the  tents 
agitated  by  it,  and  the  loose  things  on  the  grass  dancing 
about,  and  the  children  merrily  chasing  them.  But  I 
found  the  breeze  more  than  pleasing ;  it  was  a  useful  help 
in  felling  the  trees,  and  we  quickly  took  advantage  of  it. 
Cutting  the  side  of  the  tree  next  to  the  breeze,  we  found 
that  the  force  of  the  wind  saved  us  half  our  labour,  for 
the  branches  being  full  and  thick  in  leaf,  they  presented 
such  a  hold  to  the  wind,  that  a  slight  notching  of  them 
brought  them  down.     In  this  way  we  felled  eight  trees, 


80  Night-Thoughts  on  the  Future. 

and  gave  the  appearance  of  a  little  clearing  to  that 
spot. 

In  the  meantime  the  evening  was  drawing  in,  and  the 
shades  of  night  soon  fell  on  us.  The  men  had  raised 
the  walls  of  their  sod  hut,  and  covering  it  over  with 
branches  of  trees,  they  were  content  for  the  night.  The 
bullocks  showed  no  disposition  to  stray ;  so,  after  seeing 
all  things  put  in  order  as  well  as  the  circumstances  per- 
mitted, we  disposed  ourselves  for  rest.  Crab  insisted  on 
keeping  watch  with  musket  and  fixed  bayonet ;  and  with 
a  cartouch-box  slung  behind  him,  he  made  a  most  for- 
midable figure. 

All  was  still ;  the  stars  were  bright  in  the  heavens, 
and  I  could  distinguish  the  faint  outlines  of  the  distant 
hills.  It  was  long  before  I  could  compose  myself  to 
sleep.  I  was  full  of  thought  and  anxiety.  I  had  every- 
thing to  do ;  mine  was  really  a  beginning.  The  soil 
around  me  had  not  been  disturbed  by  civilized  man  since 
its  creation.  The  vast  wilderness  seemed  to  have  re- 
ceived us  into  its  ample  bosom,  and  to  have  closed 
around  us,  shutting  us  out  from  all  communication  with 
humanity.  We  formed  but  a  little  speck  on  the  vast 
space  of  the  uninhabited  country.  I  endeavoured  to 
picture  to  myself  the  future  farms  that  might  arise 
around  us,  and  the  coming  of  neighbours  to  cheer  and 
strengthen  us.  But  the  reality  was  too  present  and  too 
strong  to  admit  of  the  consolations  of  the  imagination. 
I  felt  committed  to  an  act  of  doubt  and  difficulty.  I 
revolved  my  past  life  in  England,  and  wondered  how 
any  state  of  misfortune  oould  have  been  urgent  enough 
to  induce  me  to  embark  in  so  fearful  an  undertaking  as 
that  of  a  settler's  life  in  the  wilderness.     But  the  very 


Implores  Divine   Help.  81 

peril  of  my  position  served  at  last  to  nerve  nie  up  to  the 
encounter.  I  felt  the  deep  responsibility  of  my  position 
as  the  futhor  of  a  young  family,  and  the  husband  of  an 
affectionate  ■wife,  who,  by  my  act,  had  been  conveyed 
from  home,  from  relations  and  from  early  friends,  to 
brave  the  risks  and  adventures  of  a  settler's  life. 

With  the  serious  thoughts  with  which  this  contem- 
plation inspired  me,  I  lay  down  to  rest,  not  without 
returning  my  grateful  thanks  to  the  Great  Disposer  of 
all  events,  for  having  arrived  thus  far  with  my  family 
in  health  and  safety,  and  entreating  the  Divine  protec- 
tion and  help  in  my  solitary  encampment ;  with  such 
prayer  I  addressed  myself  to  sleep  to  gather  strength 
for  the  morrow. 
6 


(C; Ij n |i t E r  luBHtlj. 

A  Settler's  daily  labours — Chopping  down  gum-trees  tough  work — 
Builds  a  Log-house — Buys  some  Sheep — Shoots  a  wild  animal — 
Black  cockatoo-pie — A  Kangaroo  steamer. 

Tlmrsday,  February  2StJi,  1817. — Up  at  daylight. 
Set  the  men  to  work  to  cross-cut  the  trees  that  we  felled 
yesterday.  Crab  helped,  and  they  sawed  and  felled 
alternately.  Crab  said  it  was  regular  nigger  work; 
when  they  were  tired  of  chopping  down  the  gum-trees, 
they  had  to  set  to  to  saw  'em — to  rest  themselves  ! 

*  ■:•:■  *  *  *  *  • 

Walked  over  my  land ;  guessing,  as  well  as  I  could, 
the  extent  of  twelve  hundred  acres,  at  the  rate  of  one- 
third  frontage  to  the  river.  Fixed  on  the  line  where 
the  measurement  of  my  lot  should  begin.  After  a  good 
deal  of  consideration  and  examination  of  the  parts  about, 
I  settled  on  the  spot  for  building  our  log-house.  I 
thought  that  the  time  might  come  when  I  should  be 
able  to  erect  a  better  house,  so  I  marked  the  place  for 
our  temporary  habitation  close  to  the  spot  for  the  future 
building,  and  so  as  to  form  a  part  of  the  general  plan. 
Marked  out  in  my  mind  a  garden  and  entrance.  After 
this  I  set  to  work  to  help  Crab  and  the  men  in  prepar- 
ing split  logs  for  the  hut.  My  wife  says  she  doesn't 
like  me  to  call  it  a  "  hut ;"  so,  mem.,  "  to  call  it  a  cot- 
tage." Got  twelve  more  trees  down  to-day.  My 
eldest  boy,  Will,  who  had  been  watching  the  working 

(82) 


Sunday   a   Day   of  Rest.  83 

bullocks  within  sight  of  the  tents,  told  us  at  dinner  tliat 
he  had  seen  a  kangaroo,  with  a  young  one  in  her  pouch, 
grazing  not  far  from  him.  I  must  get  dogs,  not  only 
for  hunting  occasionally,  but  for  safety,  to  give  the 
alarm  at  night,  and  in  the  day-time  too.  The  weather 
beautiful.  We  live  in  th(^open  air,  and  it  seems  to  me 
it  would  not  harm  us  to  sleep  in  the  open  air;  but  wc 
have  our  tents.     No  one  came  near  us  all  day. 

Friday,  March  1. — At  work  all  day  with  Crab  and 
the  men,  sawing  the  fallen  timber  into  lengths  and 
splitting  it  to  set  up.  Crab  has  been  splitting  shingles 
to  serve  instead  of  tiles  for  the  roof.  Bob  said  that  many 
huts  are  thatched  with  a  sort  of  grass,  abundant  in  all 
marshy  places,  and  which  serves  the  purpose  of  straw 
pretty  well;  but  I  don't  like  the  idea  of  having  a  com- 
bustible roof  where  you  are  exposed  to  fii'c,  as  well  from 
the  natives  as  from  the  accidental  firing  of  the  dry  grass 
in  the  summer  season ;  so,  although  it  is  more  labour 
and  more  expense,  I  have  decided  against  thatch.  Had 
the  shingles  split  ten  inches  long  and  four  broad.  Only 
cut  four  more  trees.     Saw  no  one  all  day. 

Sunday,  March  3. — Could  not  make  up  my  mind  at 
first  what  to  do,  whether  to  go  on  with  our  cottage, 
which  was  a  pressing  want,  or  to  keep  the  Sunday  as  a 
day  of  rest.  Consulted  with  my  wife.  She  thought  it 
was  proper  to  keep  up  the  distinction  of  the  Sunday  fur 
the  sake  of  preserving  the  good  habits  of  the  children. 
Pondered  over  the  matter  a  good  deal.  As  to  there 
being  any  harm  in  working  on  a  Sunday  on  such  mat- 
ters as  we  were  engaged,  I  did  not  think  there  was  ;  but 
as  the  weather  was  fine,  I  thought  it  best  not  to  disturb 
Sunday  habits.     So  after  we  had  read  prayers  to  the 


84  Commence  Building. 

children,  we  passed  tlie  day  talking,  and  planning,  and 
strolling  among  the  trees,  but  not  far  from  the  house. 
And  I  don't  think  there  was  any  time  lost,  after  all ;  for 
our  day's  rest  made  us  the  fresher  and  stronger  for 
Monday's  work.  As  I  am  upon  this  subject,  I  may  say 
here,  that  in  my  experience  I  never  knew  any  harm 
lome  to  a  man's  constitution  from  working  the  sis  days 
t»f  the  week  as  hard  as  he  might,  if  he  rested  on  the 
(Seventh.  But  I  have  observed  that  when  a  man  in  his 
eagerness  has  worked  every  day  without  taking  his  rest 
on  the  seventh,  it  has  worn  him  out,  and  that  he  has 
become  used  up  much  sooner  than  the  man  who  rested 
one  day  in  the  week.  And  this  remark  holds  good,  as 
I  have  had  occasion  to  know,  with  those  who  worked 
with  their  heads  as  well  as  with  those  who  worked  with 
their  hands.  Saw  no  one  all  day.  No  Sunday  visitors  here. 

Monday. — Began  setting  up  the  logs  to  form  the  walls 
of  the  house.  House  to  be  sixty  feet  long  and  sixteen 
broad,  and  the  logs  nine  feet  out  of  the  ground;  to  be 
divided  into  one  large  room,  twenty  feet  long ;  a  passage 
ten  feet  wide ;  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  passage  four 
rooms,  one  to  be  a  store-room.  At  the  end  of  the  pas- 
sage, facing  the  entrance,  a  closet  for  all  sorts  of  things. 
At  the  back  of  the  long  room  of  twenty  feet,  a  skillion, 
to  serve  as  a  kitchen,  &c. 

When  I  showed  the  plan  to  Crab,  he  said,  "  I  should 
never  live  to  finish  it ;  however,  I  might  go  on  building 
it  till  I  left,  and  he  would  not  balk  my  humour  if  I  had 
a  fancy  for  it." 
i      Saturday. — IMorc  chopping  and  sawing. 

Sunday. — Passed  as  before. 

Monday f  March  11. — Hard  at  work  at  the  house,  and 


A    J!)ETTLER'S    DaILY    LifE.  85 

all  the  week ;  put  the  logs  in  the  ground  two  feet  accp ; 
got  all  the  shingles  split  for  the  roof. 

Tuesday^  March  19. — The  cottage  presents  a  respecta- 
ble appearance.  Shingled  it  over  as  far  as  the  long 
room,  then  stopped  for  want  of  shingle  nails.  We  had 
not  had  fresh  meat  since  we  got  on  the  land,  and  my 
wife  thought  the  children  were  not  thriving.  Arranged 
to  send  the  bullock-cart  to  camp  for  a  fresh  supply  of 
nails  and  flour,  and  to  bring  up  as  much  as  it  could 
carry  of  our  goods  from  the  merchant's  store — Crab  to 
go,  with  one  man. 

WednesJa?/. — Saw  the  cart  off.  We  all  felt  very 
lonely.  We  did  not  lose  time,  however,  but  finished  odd 
things  about  that  wanted  attending  to. 

Thursday,  March  21. — Took  my  gun,  to  sec  if  I 
could  bring  down  some  ducks,  to  make  a  fresh  meal  for 
the  children ;  for  we  had  been  living  on  the  salt  pork 
we  had  brought  up  with  us.  Tried  to  keep  the  tents 
and  new  building  in  sight,  but  was  led  further  than  I 
intended.  Came  up  to  a  lot  of  ducks  swimming  leisurely 
about  at  a  part  of  the  river  that  was  very  deep,  with  the 
current  not  so  rapid  as  in  the  shallow  parts.  I  was  go- 
ing to  have  a  shot  at  about  twenty  of  them,  when  sud- 
denly a  gun  was  fired  into  the  midst  of  them,  close  to 
me.  I  was  in  a  terrible  fright — the  suddenness  of  the 
report,  and  its  unexpectedness,  filling  me  at  the  moment, 
with  all  sorts  of  fears.  IMy  first  impulse  was  to  run 
home  to  my  wife  and  children;  and  then  the  thought 
occurred  that  I  should  be  exposed  and  defenceless  that 
way,  to  be  shot  at,  if  there  was  any  one  of  a  mind  to 
do  it. 

All  these  thoughts  passed  ihrougli  my  head  in  an  in- 


86  New  Way  of  Making  Acquaintance. 

stant ;  and  in  the  meanwhile,  the  man  who  had  fired  the 
shot  advanced  rapidly  through  the  shrubs  after  his  game. 
As  he  came  on,  his  eyes  lighted  on  me  with  my  gun 
oocked,  and  pointed  towards  him.  I  saw  at  once  by  liis 
manner  that  he  was  as  much  frightened  at  me  as  I  was 
at  him.  The  Fat  Doe  River  at  this  place  is  about  forty 
feet  across :  he  was  on  the  other  side.  There  we  stood 
•^or  a  little  while,  he  stopping  and  gaping,  and  I  stand- 
ing with  my  piece  in  the  position  to  fire.  Plow  long  we 
.should  have  remained  in  these  positions,  each  in  fear  of 
the  other,  I  can't  pretend  to  say;  but  the  suspense  ended 
by  a  flock  of  ducks  that  came  flying  between  us,  just 
over  our  heads.  The  ducks  were  so  close,  they  looked 
so  plump  as  I  stood  under  them,  and  I  wanted  them  so 
much,  that  I  could  not  resist  the  temptation.  By  a  sort 
of  instinct,  for  I  was  always  fond  of  sporting,  I  raised 
up  my  piece,  and  forgetting  my  usual  caution,  I  let  fly 
at  them.     Down  came  tliree. 

"Well  done !"  cried  out  the  stranger;  "I  see  there's 
no  harm  in  you,  or  you  would  not  have  flung  your  fire 
that  way ;  but  you'll  loose  your  ducks,  if  you  don't  mind ; 
there  are  two  in  the  water  sailing  down  the  stream." 

I  soon  found  a  long  rod,  with  which  I  secured  my 
birds;  and  the  stranger  going  further  down  the  stream, 
recovered  the  four  which  he  had  shot  before  me. 

"  I  suppose  you  took  me  for  a  bush-ranger  ?"  bawled 
I,  speaking  to  him  as  he  was  standing  and  holding  his 
•wet  ducks  by  the  legs,  on  the  other  side  of  the  narrow 
stream. 

"  I  did  not  like  the  looks  of  you,  as  you  stood  with  your 
gun  pointed  at  me  as  you  did ;  that's  just  the  way  of  'em, 
I  suppose  you're  looking  for  land?" 


0  ];  T  A  i  .\   i  0  .M  K   Dugs.  87 

"  1  have  fouud  my  land,  aud  I'm  on  it,  not  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  from  here.     What  are  you  doing  ?" 

"  I  have  got  charge  of  a  stock-yard,  about  fifteen  miles 
off,  and  I'm  going  my  rounds  to  see  how  the  cattle  lie." 

'*  Cattle  !  I  wish  I  had  known  there  were  cattle  here- 
abouts; I  should  have  been  glad  of  some  of  the  fresh 
meat.  I've  seen  none  near  us.  But,  to  be  sure,  I  have 
never  left  my  tents  before  to-day,  to  go  as  far  as  this 
even.  But  we  can  talk  as  we  go  home;  they  are  waiting 
for  me,  and  glad  enough  will  they  be  at  what  I  am  bring, 
iug  them." 

With  this  we  proceeded  homewards,  till  we  came  to  the 
part  of  the  stream  where  a  tree  had  fallen  across,  which 
served  as  a  bridge  for  the  stock-keeper  to  come  over  to  me. 
When  we  got  to  the  tents,  he  went,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
to  the  men's  sod-hut,  where  Bob  did  the  honours ;  this 
relieved  me  from  a  little  embarrassment,  for  I  did  not 
know  on  what  footing  to  treat  the  stock-keeper.  After 
a  while  Bob  appeared  with  the  stranger's  four  ducks, 
saying  that  he  would  be  glad  of  salt  pork  instead,  as  it 
would  be  a  treat  to  him. 

Friday,  3Iarch  22. — The  stock-keeper  slept  in  Bob's 
hut.  I  found  that  he  had  two  kangaroo  dogs  for  sale, 
a  dog  and  a  bitch — asked  twelve  dollars  each  for  them. 
Thought  it  a  large  sum,  but  after  some  explanation  agreed 
to  give  it.     To  bring  the  dogs  on  Tuesday. 

Saturday,  March  23. — Tried  my  hand  with  Bob  at 
making  a  table.  Took  some  of  the  cleanest  of  the  split 
logs,  and  splitting  them  again,  contrived,  by  smoothing 
them  with  the  axe,  and  planing  them  where  possible,  to 
produce  a  tolerably  even  surface.  It  was  six  feet  long, 
and  four  wide.     My  wife  praised  my  ingenuity,  and  her 


88  Start  off  to  Buy  Sheep. 

motlier  declared  it  was  a  splendid  piece  of  furniture.  The 
''Jiildren  were  very  merry  at  it,  and  Betsy,  my  eldest  girl, 
who  was  christened  after  her  grandmother,  covered  it  with 
an  old  green  cloth,  that  had  served  to  pack  things  in, 
which  gave  it  quite  a  genteel  look. 

We  were  all  abed  and  asleep,  when  we  were  awakened 
by  a  prodigious  cracking  of  whips  and  sounds  of  voices 
in  the  distance.  We  were  agreeably  surprised  by  the 
arrival  of  the  bullock-cart,  with  Crab  and  the  man,  bear- 
ing fresh  supplies  and  additions  to  our  stores,  for  we  did 
not  expect  him  till  next  day. 

Sunday,  24. — Passed  as  usual.  Crab  says  he  has  seen 
a  fine  lot  of  sheep — one  hundred  and  eighty  ewes  with 
their  lambs,  and  forty  wethers,  to  be  had  cheap  for 
money,  near  the  Green  Ponds.  Thought  of  the  sheep 
all  night,  but  could  not  plan  how  to  keep  them  without 
another  servant. 

Monday,  25. — Found  that  John  Bond,  one  of  my  go- 
vernment men,  had  been  used  to  sheep  in  England. 
Determined  to  have  a  look  at  the  sheep  next  day,  but 
very  reluctant  to  leave  home. 

Tuesday,  26. — Crab  and  Bob  set  to  work  to  complete 
the  shingling  of  the  cottage.  Seeing  the  importance  of 
beginning  to  get  stock  about  me,  and  of  taking  advan- 
tage of  cheap  sales,  I  started  off  at  daylight  with  John 
Bond  to  the  Green  Ponds.  Arrived  there  at  mid-day; 
examined  the  sheep,  bought  the  whole  lot  at  10s.  GJ.  a 
head,  that  is,  reckoning  the  ewe  and  lamb  as  one.  The 
lambs  are  about  five  months  old.  This  comes  to  four 
hundred  and  sixty-two  dollars,  dollars  passing  for  five 
shillings,  which  cost  me  four  shillings  and  fourpenco  iu 
London. 


A  Night  Alarm.  89 

They  were  large  carcassed  sheep,  partaking  more  of  the 
Leicestershire  breed  than  any  other;  their  wool  far  from 
fiae,  but  not  positively  coarse.  These  one  hundred  and 
eighty  ewes  formed  the  basis  of  my  future  flocks,  of  the 
rise  of  which  I  shall  have  to  speak  in  the  proper  place. 
I  paid  for  the  sheep  by  an  order  for  so  much  money  in 
camp.  When  I  had  bought  them,  the  next  thing  was 
how  to  get  them  home.  I  and  my  man  drove  them  to  the 
foot  of  the  D^n  Hill  that  evening,  and  then  letting  them 
feed  in  the  valley,  they  rested  quietly  where  they  were 
when  the  day  closed. 

We  kept  watch  and  watch  all  night.  About  the  mid- 
dle of  the  night  the  sheep  became  very  restless,  and  I 
wondered  what  was  the  matter,  and  was  easily  alarmed, 
being  in  constant  apprehension  of  bush-rangers  and  na- 
tives. I  had  my  gun  ready,  and  listened  attentively ;  T 
could  hear  nothing  but  my  man  snoring.  Presently  I 
thought  I  heard  a  sort  of  snuffing,  as  of  some  animal, 
and  peering  through  the  dark,  I  thought  I  saw  an  out- 
line different  from  that  of  a  sheep,  and  standing  by  itself. 
I  knew  there  were  no  wild  animals  in  the  country  that 
would  attack  man,  but  I  felt  a  little  queerish  at  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  shadowy  form  of  a  creature  which  I  took 
to  be  the  natiye  dog,  as  I  had  heard  it  called  in  camp. 
I  was  curious  to  know  what  it  was,  and,  prompted  by 
that  feeling  of  using  the  gun  which  grows  with  one  in 
the  bush,  I  fired.  The  whole  flock  roused  up  at  this, 
and  my  man  awoke  directly.  I  told  him  what  I  had 
done,  and  when  we  had  settled  the  sheep  down  again,  we 
"went  to  the  spot,  and  found  an  animal  killed  and  warm. 

When  the  daylight  came,  I  found  I  had  killed  a  sort 
of  animal  peculiar  to  the  country,  as  all  animals  are  in 


90  Arrive  at  Home  with  my  Sheep. 

Van  Diemen's  Land.  It  was  more  like  a  large  wild  dog 
or  jackal  than  anything  else;  about  the  size  of  a  New- 
foundland dog,  but  not  so  thick  and  heavy ;  of  a  brown- 
ish colour,  and  was  partly  striped  and  partly  spotted  like 
a  leopard.  It  was  a  female,  and  possessed  the  peculiarity 
attached  only  to  the  animals  of  New  South  Wales,  of  the 
false  belly  or  pouch  for  containing  the  young  one.  I  was 
not  naturalist  enough  to  make  out  to  what  description  of 
animal  the  creature  belonged,  but  my  frieijd  Mr.  Moss, 
who  settled  near  me  some  years  after,  has  told  me  since, 
that  the  animal  is  of  the  canine  genus,  and  of  a  species 
before  unknown.  My  man  skinned  it  for  me,  and  when 
we  got  home  Betsy  covered  the  stump  of  a  gum-tree  with 
it,  and  it  being  elegantly  stuffed  with  dry  grass,  it  formed 
a  seat  of  honour  for  my  wife. 

We  lost  no  time  in  getting  the  sheep  over  the  long  hill, 
and  then  letting  them  travel  leisurely,  we  reached  home 
with  them  before  noon. 

There  was  a  fine  stir  about  the  tents  when  the  sheep 
came  in  sight.  We  were  welcomed  by  my  wife,  and  her 
mother,  and  the  children  in  a  body.  Even  Crab  seemed 
pleased. 

"Well,"  said  he,  "here's  more  company,  at  any  rate. 
You  must  look  sharp  after  them,  or  not  a  tail  will  you 
see  to-morrow  morning.  The  sheep  in  this  country  are 
dreadful  creatures  to  stray.  And  no  wonder,  poor  things ! 
they  naturally  try  to  find  some  grass  fit  to  eat,  which  they 
never  do,  and  that  makes  'em  eternally  wandering  about. 
We  shall  have  a  pretty  job  to  brand  'em.  Where  do  you 
mean  to  mark  'em." 

"  Why,"  said  I,  "  I  must  do  as  well  as  I  can,  for  I 
tave  no  marking-irons." 


AnotuerTriptoTown.  91 

"  No  marking-irons  !  Here's  a  mess !  We  must 
make  another  journey  to  town.  Only  think  of  travel- 
ling fifty  or  sixty  miles,  and  the  same  back,  after  mark- 
ing-irons, or  any  little  thing  that  may  be  wanted.  Why, 
there  isn't  a  blacksmith  nearer  than  camp !  Well,  i 
suppose  wc  must  make  another  trip  ?" 

"And  no  great  harm  in  that/'  said  I;  "I  don't  see 
the  use  of  putting  the  plough  in  the  ground  yet;  it's  too 
late  and  too  early ;  so  we  had  better  take  advantage  of 
the  leisure,  and  curt  everything  up  that  must  be  carted." 

"  Why,  you  never  mean  to  drag  all  your  goods  up 
here,  when  you're  sure  to  have  to  drag  them  all  back 
again  ?"  said  Crab ;  "  for  as  to  staying  here,  that's  out 
of  all  question.  You'll  soon  have  a  visit  from  the  bush- 
rangers when  they  smell  out  there  is  something  to  be 
got;  or  else  the  natives  will  call  on  you  in  a  friendly 
way,  and  make  a  bonfire  of  your  new  house ;  or  else — 
you'll  make  a  bonfire  of  it  yourself,  when  you  come  to 
be  sick  of  the  whole  affair,  as  you  soon  will." 

"  We  shall  sec,"  said  I.  And  so  it  was  settled  that 
the  cart  should  go  down  next  day  with  Crab  and  Bob, 
as  we  should  want  the  other  man  to  mind  the  sheep. 
We  turned  our  little  flock  into  the  meadow,  where  we 
could  see  for  a  mile  before  us,  with  only  trees  enough  to 
make  the  place  look  pleasing,  like  a  gentleman's  park  in 
England. 

The  stock-keeper  came  this  afternoon  with  the  two 
kangaroo  dogs,  Hector  and  Fly ;  I  found  they  were  the 
very  same  dogs  I  had  met  with  at  New  Norfolk.  They 
goon  got  used  to  us. 

Wednesdai/,  March  27. — Crab  went  to  camp  with  Bob, 
and  one  of  the  carts,  and  four  bullocks.     The  stock- 


92  AKangaroo  Steamer. 

keeper  stayed  witli  us  to-day  to  lend  a  hand  to  finish  the 
tthingling ;  but  my  boy  was  mad  to  take  the  dogs  out 
^fter  a  kangaroo,  and  the  stock-keeper  promised  to  go 
tvith  him  and  show  him  the  sport  next  morning. 

Got  on  well  with  the  shingling  to-day. 

Thursday,  March  28. — Finished  the  shingling  to-day 
all  but  the  skillion. 

Just  after  dark,  Will  came  home  with  his  new  friend, 
the  stock-keeper,  tired  enough,  and  he  soon  made  an  end 
of  the  remains  of  a  cockatoo-pie.  He  brought  with  him 
the  tail  of  an  immense  kangaroo  as  a  trophy,  while  the 
stock-keeper  bore  on  his  shoulders  the  hind-quarters  of 
another,  holding  the  two  hind-legs  before  him,  while  the 
tail  was  hanging  down  his  back  nearly  to  the  gi-ound.  I 
asked  what  they  had  done  with  the  kangaroo  that  Will's 
tail  belonged  to,  and  they  said  they  had  left  the  fore- 
quarters  on  the  ground,  and  that  they  had  hoisted  up 
the  hind-quarters  and  the  skins  on  a  tree,  some  six  or 
seven  miles  from  the  tents.  I  thought  this  a  sad  waste, 
but  it  was  the  general  custom  .in  those  times.  The  wo- 
men then  busied  themselves  in  cooking  part  of  the 
venison  for  supper,  under  the  instructions  of  the  stock- 
keeper,  who  was  an  experienced  epicure  in  kangaroo 
cookery.  The  tenderest  parts,  and  those  most  free  from 
the  tendons  and  fibres  with  which  the  flesh  of  the  kan- 
garoo abounds,  were  carefully  cut  out,  and  chopped  up 
fine ;  some  slices  of  salt  pork  were  added  to  this,  and 
the  whole  put  to  steam  slowly  over  the  fire. 

This  national  dish  of  the  Van  Diemen's  Land  bush  is 
called  a  "  Steamer.''  I  think  I  never  ate  anything  so 
delicious;  we  all  had  a  hearty  stuff",  and  the  old  lady 
insisted  on  having  the  rum  introduced,  to  celebrate,  as 


My  Son's  He  turn.  93 

she  said,  Will's  first  exploit  of  huntiug.  The  tail  was 
left  on  the  fire  in  a  Papin's  digester,  to  make  soup  for 
the  next  day.  The  soup  was  better  even  than  the 
steamer ;  but  I  must  not  anticipate.  As  we  sat  rouud 
the  fire  on  our  logs  of  wood,  enjoying  ourselves  after 
the  bush  fashion,  I  sitting,  as  my  custom  was  at  that 
time,  with  my  gun  over  my  arm,  for  fear  of  surprises, 
but  feeling  more  safe  since  the  arrival  of  the  dogs,  which 
in  this  country  act  not  only  as  hounds  for  hunting,  but 
as  capital  watch-dogs,  the  ladies  were  curious  to  know 
how  "Will  had  contrived  to  catch  the  kangaroos,  and 
what  sort  of  sport  it  was.  Will  was  very  tired,  but  the 
cockatoo-pie  and  the  steamer  had  refreshed  him,  and  he 
soon  fired  up  at  the  recollection  of  the  sport,  and  told  us 
what  had  happened  to  him.  As  this  was  my  boy's  first 
expedition,  I  noted  down  his  description  in  my  journal, 
thinking  it  might  interest  him  in  after  times ;  and  to  do 
it  the  greater  honour,  I  have  made  it  the  subject  of  a 
separate  chapter. 


(Tjiiiptrr    ^igjitlj. 


A  Kangaroo  hunt — Description  and  habits  of  the  animal — Crab 
dilates  on  the  topsy-turviness  of  all  things  animal,  vegetable  and 
geographical  in  Tan  Diemen's  Land. 

It  was  just  light  when  the  stock-keeper  called  me,  and 
I  wasn't  long  dressing.  I  took  one  of  the  large  pistols 
that  father  said  I  might  have,  and  the  stock-keeper  had 
a  musket,  and  we  had  half  a  damper  and  a  paper  of  salt, 
and  I  had  my  big  hack-knife,  and  so  off  we  went.  I  do 
think  Hector  knew  he  was  going  to  have  some  kangaroo, 
for  he  seemed  so  glad,  and  licked  his  chops,  and  Fly  wag- 
ged her  tail,  and  the  morning  was  so  beautiful;  and  what 
do  you  think,  father,  the  bird  that  mother  likes  to  hear 
so  much  is  a  magpie  I  it  is  indeed,  for  I  saw  it,  and  it's 
just  like  an  English  magpie,  only  it  sings  so  beautifully. 
We  walked  over  the  plain  till  we  came  to  the  hills;  the 
dogs  kept  quiet  behind  us.  The  stock-keeper  said  I 
might  see  they  had  been  well  trained ;  they  kept  their 
heads  low,  and  their  tails  hanging  down  behind  them,  as 
if  they  had  no  life  in  them ;  but  you  should  have  seen 
them  when  they  got  sight  of  a  kangaroo,  did'nt  they 
pluck  up !  We  went  on  till  we  got  about  four  or  five 
miles  from  the  tents,  and  then  we  did  not  talk,  for  the 
kangaroos  are  startled  at  the  least  noise;  they  are  just 
like  hares  for  that.     Then  the  stock-keeper  stood  still. 

He  said  to  the  dogs,  "■  Go  find;"  and  then  the  dogs  can- 
(94) 


A    K  A  N  O  A  R  0  0    H  U  N  T  .  95 

tered  about  round  us,  going  farther  and  farther,  till  Hec- 
tor began  to  smell  about  very  earnestly. 

"He  has  got  scent,"  said  the  stock-keeper,  and  so  ho 
had,  for  he  galloped  ofiF  with  his  nose  to  the  ground, 
straight  ahead.     Fly  saw  him,  and  she  galloped  after. 

"I  think  it's  a  big  one,"  said  the  stock-keeper,  "the 
dogs  seem  so  warm  at  it." 

I  was  running  after  them  as  fast  as  I  could,  when  the 
stock-keeper  called  after  me  to  stop. 

"  Stop,"  said  he ;  "  it's  of  no  use  for  you  to  run,  you 
could  not  keep  up  with  them." 

"  Why,  what  are  we  to  do?"  said  I;  "if  they  kill  a 
kangaroo,  how  can  we  find  it  ?" 

"Wait  a  bit,"  said  he ;  "  all  in  good  time.  If  the  dogs 
kill  a  kangaroo,  we  shall  find  him,  I'll  warrant." 

So  we  waited  and  waited  till  I  was  quite  tired ;  and  a 
good  while  after.  Hector  came  back  quite  slowly,  as  if 
he  was  tired,  with  Fly  following  after.  The  stock-keeper 
looked  at  his  mouth. 

"  What's  that  for  ?"  said  I. 

"  To  see  if  he  has  killed,"  said  he ;  "  look  here,  his 
mouth  is  bloody,  and  that's  come  by  killing  a  kangaroo, 
you  may  be  sure  of  it." 

Then  the  stock-keeper  stood  up  and  said  to  Hector, 
"Show;"  and  then  Hector  trotted  oiF,  not  fast, but  pretty 
fast,  so  that  I  was  obliged  to  trot  too  to  keep  up  with 
him;  and  he  trotted  on  and  on  till  I  was  rather  tired,  I 
dare  say  for  three  miles  from  where  we  were  at  first ;  and 
on  he  went,  and  we  following  him,  till  he  brought  us  to 
a  dead  kangaroo,  close  to  a  little  pool  of  water.  It  was 
a  monstrous  big  one,  with  such  a  claw  on  each  of  his 
hind-legs ;  a  claw  that  would  rip  up  a  dog  in  a  moment, 
or  a  man  too,  if  he  got  at  him. 


96        Fight  with  the   Kangaroo. 

"  Good  dog !"  said  the  stock -keeper,  and  Hector  wagged 
his  tail,  and  seemed  to  like  to  be  praised.  Then  the 
stock-keeper  gave  me  his  gun  to  hold,  and  he  cut  open 
the  kangaroo  and  gave  the  inside  to  the  dogs.  Then  he 
skinned  the  upper  part  down  to  the  loins,  and  cut  the 
kangaroo  in  half,  and  hung  it  up  in  a  tree,  noting  the 
place  ',  the  other  half  he  left  on  the  ground ;  that  is,  when 
he  went  away  from  the  place,  for  he  would  not  let  the 
dogs  have  more  than  a  taste  of  the  blood,  lest  it  should 
spoil  their  hunting. 

"What's  to  be  done  now?"  said  I. 

"We'll  kill  another,"  said  the  stock-keeper,  "if  you 
are  not  tired." 

I  said  I  was  not  tired  a  bit ;  so  after  we  had  rested  a 
little  while,  we  went  on  again,  the  dogs  following  us  as 
at  first.  We  saw  plenty  of  brush  kangaroos,  but  we 
would  not  touch  them.  After  we  had  got  a  mile  or  two, 
the  stock-keeper,  who  had  been  examining  the  ground  all 
the  way  along,  said,  "I  think  there  are  some  big  ones 
hereabouts,  by  the  look  of  the  marks;"  so  he  said  to  the 
dogs,  "  Go  find,"  as  he  had  said  before.  Almost  directly, 
we  saw  such  a  large  fellow — I'm  sure  he  was  six  feet 
high — he  looked  at  us  and  at  the  dogs  for  a  moment,  and 
then  ofi"  he  went.  My  gracious  !  what  hops  he  did  give  ! 
he  hopped  with  his  two  hind-legs,  with  his  fore-logs  in 
the  air,  and  his  tail  straight  out  behind  him, — and  wasn't 
it  a  tail ! — it  was  as  thick  as  a  bed-post !  and  this  great 
tail  went  wag,  wag,  up  and  down,  as  he  jumped,  and 
seemed  to  balance  him  behind.  But  Hector  and  Fly  were 
after  him.  This  time  the  stock-keeper  ran  too,  for  the 
ground  w^as  level  and  clear  of  fallen  timber,  and  you 
could  see  a  good  way  before  you.  I  had  begun  to  feel  a 
little  tired,  but  I  didn't  feel  tired  then.     Hop,  hop  went 


Chase  another  Kangaroo.        97 

the  kangaroo,  and  the  dogs  after  him,  and  we  after  the 
dogs;  and  we  scampei-ed  on  till  I  was  quite  out  of  breath  ; 
and  the  kangaroo  was  a  good  bit  before  the  dogs,  when 
he  turned  up  a  hill. 

"Now  we  shall  have  him,"  said  the  stock-keeper; 
"  the  dogs  will  beat  him  up  hill." 

I  wanted  my  breath,  but  I  kept  up,  and  we  scrambled 
up  the  hill,  and  I  thought  the  dogs  would  get  him;  but 
the  kangaroo  got  to  the  top  of  the  hill  first,  and  when  wo 
got  a  sight  of  him,  he  was  bounding  dowu  the  hill, 
making  such  prodigious  leaps  at  every  jump,  over  every 
thing,  that  you  could'nt  believe  it,  if  you  did'nt  see  it. 
The  dogs  had  no  chance  with  him  down  hill. 

"It's  of  no  use,"  said  the  stock-keeper,  "for  us  to 
try  to  keep  up  with  him;  wo  may  as  well  stay  here. 
He'll  lead  the  dogs  a  pretty  chase,  will  that  fellow ; 
he's  a  Boomah,  and  one  of  the  biggest  rascals  I  ever 
saw." 

So  we  sat  down  at  the  top  of  the  hill,  under  a  gum-tree, 
and  there  we  sat  a  long  time,  I  don't  know  how  long, 
until  we  saw  Hector  coming  up.  The  stock-keeper  looked 
at  his  mouth. 

"He  has  killed,"  said  he;  "but  he  has  got  a  little 
scratched  in  the  tussle,  and  so  has  Fly.  That  big  chap 
was  almost  too  much  for  two  dogs."  Then  he  said,  "  Go, 
show!"  and  Hector  and  Fly  trotted  along  straight  to 
where  the  kangaroo  lay,  without  turning  to  the  right  or 
left,  but  going  over  everything,  just  as  if  they  knew  the 
road  quite  well.  We  came  to  a  hollow,  and  there  we  saw 
the  kangaroo  lying  dead.  Just  as  the  stock-keeper  was 
going  to  cut  him  open,  I  saw  another  kangaroo  not  a 
hundred  yards  off. 
7 


98      Kangaroo   Fights  the  Dogs. 

"There's  another,"  said  I;  and  the  dogs,  although 
they  had  had  a  hard  battle  with  the  kangaroo  lying  dead, 
started  off  directly.  Close  by  us  was  a  large  pond  of 
water,  like  a  little  lake.  The  kangaroo  was  between  the 
dogs  and  the  lake.  Not  knowing  how  to  get  past,  I 
suppose,  he  hopped  right  into  the  lake,  and  the  dogs 
went  after  him.  He  hopped  further  into  the  lake,  where 
the  water  got  deeper,  and  then  the  dogs  were  obliged  to 
swim,  but  they  were  game,  and  would  not  leave  their 
work.  When  the  kangaroo  found  himself  getting  pretty 
deep  in  the  water,  he  stopped,  and  turned  on  the  dogs; 
but  he  could  not  use  his  terrible  hind  claws,  so  when  one 
of  the  dogs  made  a  rise  at  his  throat  (they  always  try  to 
get  hold  of  the  throat),  he  took  hold  of  him  with  his  fore- 
legs, and  ducked  him  under  the  water.  Then  the  other 
dog  made  a  spring  at  him,  and  the  kangaroo  ducked  him 
in  the  same  way. 

"  Well,"  said  the  stock-keeper,  ''  I  never  saw  the  like 
of  that  before ;  this  is  a  new  game." 

And  all  the  while  the  dogs  kept  springing  at  the  kan- 
garoo's throat,  and  the  kangaroo  kept  ducking  them  un- 
der the  water.  But  it  was  plain  the  dogs  were  getting 
exhausted,  for  they  were  obliged  to  swim  and  be  ducked 
too,  while  the  kangaroo  stood  with  his  head  and  fore-legs 
from  out  of  the  water. 

" This  will  never  do,"  said  the  stock-keeper;  "he'll 
drown  the  dogs  soon  at  this  rate."  So  he  took  his  gun 
from  me,  and  put  a  ball  in  it. 

"Now,"  said  he,  "for  a  good  shot;  I  must  take  care 
not  to  hit  the  dogs." 

He  put  his  gun  over  the  branch  of  a  dead  tree,  and 
watching  his  time,  he  fired,  and  hit  the  kangaroo  in  the 


Make  a   Dinner  of   Hi  m  .  99 

nctk,  and  down  it  came  in  the  water.     He  then  called 
off  the  dogs,  and  thoy  swam  back  to  us. 

"  He  is  such  a  prime  one,"  said  he,  "  it  would  be  a  pity 
to  lose  his  skin ;"  so  he  waded  in  after  him,  and  dragged 
bira  out.  "  It's  a  pity,"  said  he,  "to  lose  so  much  meat, 
but  his  hind-quarters  would  be  a  bigger  load  than  I 
should  like  to  carry  home ;  but  I  must  have  his  skin,  and 
I'll  tell  you  what,  young  fellow,  you  shall  have  his  tail, 
though  I'm  thinking  it's  rather  more  than  you  can  carry 
home." 

This  roused  me  a  bit,  to  think  I  couldn't  carry  a  kan- 
garoo's tail;  so  I  determined  to  take  it  home,  if  I  dropped, 
though  I  must  say  it  was  so  heavy  that  I  was  obliged  to 
rest  now  and  then,  and  the  stock-keeper  carried  it  a  good 
part  of  the  way  for  me. 

"  What  shall  we  do  with  the  meat  ?"  said  I. 

"What  shall  we  do  with  it!"  said  he;  "are  you 
hungry  ?" 

"  I  believe  you,"  said  I. 

"  Then  we'll  make  a  dinner  off  him,"  said  the  stock- 
keeper. 

With  that  we  got  together  some  dry  sticks,  and  made 
a  fire,  and  the  stock-keeper  took  the  ramrod  of  his  mus- 
ket, and  first  he  cut  a  slice  of  the  lean  off  the  loins, 
which  he  said  was  the  tenderest  part,  and  put  the  ramrod 
through  it,  and  then  he  cut  out  a  bit  of  fat,  and  slid  it 
on  after  the  lean,  and  so  on  a  bit  of  fat  and  a  bit  of  lean, 
till  he  had  put  on  lots  of  slices,  and  so  he  roasted  thorn 
over  the  fire.  He  gave  me  the  ramrod  to  hold,  and 
cutting  a  long  slice  of  bark  out  of  a  gum-tree,  made  two 
plates  •  capital  plates,  he  said,  for  a  bush  dinner.  I  told 
you  we  had  got  some  salt  and  some  damper,  and  I  was 


100    Nature  of  the  Kangaroo. 

pretty  hungry,  as  you  may  suppose,  and  I  thouglit  it  tlie 
most  delicious  dinner  I  ever  ate.  When  I  had  done,  I 
laid  down  on  the  grass,  and  Hector  and  Fly  came  and 
laid  themselves  down  beside  me,  and  somehow,  I  don't 
know  how  it  was,  I  fell  asleep,  I  was  so  tired.  I  slept  a 
good  while,  for  the  stock-keeper  said  it  would  have  been 
a  sin  to  wake  me,  I  was  in  such  a  sweet  sleep.  I  woko 
up,  however,  after  a  good  nap,  and  felt  as  if  I  could  eat 
a  bit  more  kangaroo.  But  it  was  getting  late,  and  so  we 
made  the  best  of  our  way  home.  We  passed  by  the  place 
where  we  had  killed  the  first  kangaroo;  so  the  stock- 
keeper  brought  home  the  hind-quarters  and  the  three 
skins,  and  I  brought  home  a  tail;  and  really  I  don't  know 
which  is  best,  kangaroo  steaks  or  kangaroo  steamer. 

"Or  cockatoo-pie,"  said  his  mother;  '' and  now  to  bed. 
I  dare  say  we  shall  dream  all  night  of  your  '  Tale  of  a 
Kangaroo.' "  *  *  *  * 

Will's  account  of  his  sport  amused  us  very  much;  and 
it  was  a  correct  description  of  the  way  of  hunting  the 
animal.  I  may  remark  here  on  the  amazing  quantity  of 
grass  that  a  kangaroo  eats ;  it  eats  nothing  else  in  its 
wild  state,  but  the  quantity  found  in  it  has  often  aston- 
ished me.  When  caught  very  young,  and  tamed,  it  will 
eat  all  sorts  of  vegetables;  but  of  all  things  I  ever 
tried  it  with,  it  is  fondest  of  brown  sugar;  it  will  follow 
you  about  for  brown  sugar,  just  as  sheep  will  follow  the 
shepherd  to  get  a  lick  of  a  lump  of  salt.  It  is  a  timid, 
fearful  animal ;  very  pretty  in  appearance  when  its  head 
and  neck  only  are  visible  over  the  bushes,  but  an  ungainly 
creature  in  its  whole  aspect.  The  feature  of  its  false 
belly  or  pouch,  into  which  the  young  one  creeps  to  sleep 
or  to  avoid  danger,  is  peculiar  to  the  females  of  all  tho 
native  animals  of  this  country. 


(f^lia|itBr  Uiutlj. 


Takes  posst3sion  of  his  new  house — Delight  of  independence — Crub 
puts  the  plough  into  the  ground — The  garden,  and  sheep-shear- 
ing— The  settler  takes  stock  and  makes  a  discovery. 

Aju'il  1. — Took  possession  of  our  new  house,  accl 
worked  hard  at  the  doors  and  window-shutters.  Frost 
at  night. 

April  2. — All  hands  at  the  stone  chimney.  Made  a 
rough  job  of  it,  but  got  on  pretty  well.  The  stone  is 
easy  to  work  j  it  easily  breaks  into  flakes  handy  for 
working ;  as  for  mortar,  we  use  some  sandy  loam  mixed 
with  clay  from  the  river,  and  it  seems  to  make  cement 
good  enough  for  our  purpose. 

April  3  and  4. — Finished  the  stone  chimney,  and 
lighted  a  blazing  fire,  for  the  nights  are  cold  now ;  and 
with  our  large  table  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  with 
Betsy's  green  cloth  on  it,  and  seated  on  our  logs  of 
wood,  we  formed  a  cheerful  party  at  supper. 

April  5. — Rose  early,  according  to  my  custom,  and 
surveyed  my  new  dwelling  with  a  particular  sort  of  satis- 
faction. '' No  rent  to  pay  for  you,"  said  I ;  "no  taxes, 
that's  pleasant ;  no  poor-rates,  that's  a  comfort ;  and  no 
one  can  give  me  warning  to  quit,  and  that's  another 
comfort;  and  it's  my  own,  thank  God,  and  that's  the 
greatest  comfort  of  all."  I  cast  my  eyes  on  the  plain 
l^  before  me,  and  saw  my  flock  of  sheep  studding  the  plain, 
with  my  working  bullocks  at  a  little  distance.     My  dogs 

(101) 


102  A  New  Feeling  or  Independence. 

came  up  and  licked  my  Lands.  Presently  my  children 
came  out  into  the  fresh  morning  air,  which  was  rather 
bracing,  as  the  weather  was  getting  colder  every  day,  in 
the  morning  and  evening,  but  still  warm  in  the  middle 
of  the  day,  and  we  had  a  romp  with  the  dogs.  As  we 
sat  at  breakfast  that  morning  in  our  rude  cottage,  with 
the  bare  walls  of  logs  of  trees,  and  the  shingle  roof 
above  us,  all  rough  enough,  but  spacious,  and  a  little 
too  airy,  I  began  to  have  a  foretaste  of  that  feeling  of  in- 
dependence and  security  of  home  and  substance  which 
I  have  so  many  years  enjoyed  in  a  higher  degree  than  I 
then  looked  for;  but  I  must  not  anticipate. 

.;«■         *  *  *  *  *         * 

Finished  all  the  doors  and  shutters,  and  put  on  good 
fastenings  of  bolts  and  locks  which  I  had  brought  from 
England. 

Ajml  6. — Considered  in  my  mind  whether  it  would 
not  be  well  to  turn  up  some  ground  to  sweeten  ready  for 
spring  sowing  in  September.  The  winter  frosts,  should 
there  be  any,  of  June,  July,  and  August,  would  pulve- 
rize the  clods  a  bit.  I  can't  help  smiling  while  I  write 
this  of  June,  July,  and  August,  being  the  winter  months; 
it  shows  how  topsy-turvy  things  are  here.  Consulted 
Crab  about  it,  for  he  understands  farming  well.  Crab 
says  there  must  be  something  wrong  about  it ;  he  can- 
not understand  how  I  can  pretend  to  have  a  Spring 
sowing  in  September  !  "  It's  against  reason,"  he  says, 
"and  against  nature,  and  he  can't  encourage  such 
nonsense." 

April  1. — Thought  I'd  try  a  bit  of  land  about  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  house,  and  that  lay  handy 
for  fencing — about  twelve  acres.     Stuck  the  plough  into 


Improving  the  Farm.  103 

it  this  morniug,  and  it  turned  up  rarely.  Crab  came  to 
laugh  at  us.  I  saw  lie  eyed  the  furrows  wistfully,  and 
cast  a  longing  look  at  the  plough.  At  last  he  grew  very 
fidgetty,  and  taking  occasion  to  lind  fault  with  the  fur- 
rows for  not  being  straight,  he  seized  hold  of  the  shafts, 
shoving  me  aside  without  much  ceremony,  saying, 
"  Heaven  be  good  to  us  !  do  you  call  that  ploughing  ? 
Here,  give  us  hold."  His  grim  visage  seemed  actually 
to  change  and  light  up  when  he  felt  the  wood  in  his 
hands,  and  giving  the  word.  Bob  smacked  on  the  bul- 
locks, and  Crab,  in  the  exuberance  of  his  joy,  began  to 
sing  some  extraordinary  Shropshire  song,  which  made 
the  woods  ring  again,  and  the  work  went  on  merrily. 
From  that  hour  Crab  would  allow  no  one  to  touch  the 
plough  but  himself,  and  he  really  seemed  to  enjoy  his 
work  with  all  the  relish  of  an  unexpected  restoration  to 
an  old  and  loved  occupation. 

The  ground  was  quite  clear  of  trees,  and  without  many 
stones,  and  in  little  more  than  a  fortnight  the  whole  was 
turned  up.  Then  we  set  to,  to  cut  down  the  light  tim- 
ber in  the  vicinity  to  make  a  bush  fence,  which  employed 
us  for  some  time.  After  that,  we  worked  hard  to  fence 
in  a  bit  of  ground  for  a  garden.  We  had  to  go  rather 
farther  from  home  after  some  stringy-bark  trees  best  for 
splitting  laths,  and  contrived  to  enclose  about  an  acre. 
Then  we  had  a  stock-yard  to  build,  and  pens  for  the 
sheep,  and  to  fence  it  with  bush  fences.  Building  the 
stock-yard  was  hard  work,  as  wc  had  to  form  it  of  the 
solid  trunks  of  trees,  about  nine  inches  to  a  foot  in 
diameter,  and  from  twenty  to  thirty  feet  long ;  these  we 
Lad  to  drag  by  bullock-chains  and  four  bullocks,  from 
a  spot  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  house :  heavy 


104  More  about  my  Farm. 

work,  and  hard  labour  to  set  them  up.  I  determined  to 
do  everything  well,  and  in  such  a  way  as  to  fall  in  with 
my  plan  of  the  future  farm  and  buildings.  All  this 
work,  and  the  sending  of  the  cart  three  times  to  Camp 
to  bring  up  various  articles,  occupied  the  whole  of  the 
winter  months  of  June,  July,  and  August. 

I  ought  to  say  here,  that  I  found  the  winter  very 
mild.  The  snow  lay  on  the  ground  once  for  three  days, 
about  two  inches  thick,  and  there  was  ice  strong  enough 
to  bear  in  one  or  two  places,  in  a  deep  hollow  about 
three  miles  from  the  cottage,  which  the  rays  of  the  sun 
did  not  reach.  The  mornings  and  evenings  were  cold, 
particularly  just  before  daylight,  when  the  cold  was 
sharpest,  but  the  middle  of  the  day  was  like  a  bright 
October  day  in  England.  There  is  very  little  rain  in  the 
autumn  in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  that  is,  from  the  begin- 
ning of  March  to  the  end  of  May ;  and  not  much  rain 
during  the  winter  months  of  June,  July  and  August. 
The  rainy  season  is  for  about  six  weeks  or  two  months 
in  the  spring,  that  is,  in  September  and  October. 

November  1. — My  one  hundred  and  eighty  ewes, 
which  I  bought  last  March,  have  produced  me  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty  lambs,  many  having  dropped  two  lambs 
a-piece.  I  trust  the  wool  will  be  improved,  as  I  had 
taken  care  to  choose  the  best  rams  I  could  find  shortly 
after  I  bought  them.  This  makes  my  flock  look  re- 
spectable. 

This  month  I  bought  six  cows  heavy  with  calf,  for 
four  pounds  each.  They  are  fine  cows,  but  rather  wild. 
Applied  for  another  servant  from  the  government,  and 
had  assigned  to  me  a  tolerably  good  one,  but  he  knows 
nothing  of  farming.     We  find  now  that  wc  have  plenty 


Summer  in  DecemberI        105 

to  do.  My  poor  wife  works  hard,  for  the  female  ser- 
vants are  generally  idle,  troublesome  things.  Her 
mother,  however,  helps  her  with  the  children.     *     * 

Got  the  windows  of  the  cottage  glazed,  and  covered 
the  floor  all  over  with  boards,  and  put  boards  over  our 
heads  for  a  ceiling.  The  shepherd  found  some  whitish 
earth,  like  whiting,  about  six  miles  from  the  cottage.  I 
had  long  since  plastered  it  inside  and  out  with  sand  and 
river  clay,  and  now  I  gave  it  a  coat  of  this  whitewash 
outside,  which  gave  it  a  very  smart  appearance,  li'or 
the  inside,  I  mixed  with  the  white  earth  some  of  the 
red  ochre  which  is  abundant  in  many  parts  of  the  coun- 
try :  this  produced  something  of  a  salmon  colour,  and 
the  plaster  being  smooth,  the  ochre  gave  it  the  appear- 
ance of  stucco,  and  it  looked  very  well  and  seemly. 

We  begin  to  think  something  of  ourselves,  and  should 
assume  airs  of  importance,  only  there  is  no  one  near  us 
to  show  them  to. 

December. — We  are  now  getting  to  the  end  of  De- 
cember, and  summer  is  coming  on.  The  wheat  looks 
well,  which  Crab  attributes  to  his  peculiar  method  of 
ploughing,  which  he  has  endeavoured  to  explain  to  me ; 
but  I  cannot  understand  it,  although  I  agree  with  him, 
of  course.  He  says  he  shall  wait  to  see  how  the  wheat 
comes  up,  and  then  he  shall  bid  me  good-by  and  go  home. 
The  garden  comes  on  beautifully.  Peas  want  stick- 
ing. Cabbages  and  cauliflowers  transplanted  last  month 
doing  well.  The  six  cows  dropped  their  calves  this 
month.  This  will  make  them  attached  to  the  place. 
The  he(jinn  iiir/  of  the  farm  looks  thriving  j  may  the  md 
not  disappoint  me  ! 


Cjmiitn  '^rntlj 


Expenses  of  settling — Increase  of  sheep  and  cattle — Anecdotes  of 
snakes — His  position  in  1821 — Increase  of  sheep  and  cattle  in 
182-4 — Sheep-stealing  increases  in  the  Colony — Hears  some  dis- 
agreeable accounts  of  bush-rangers — His  prosperous  state  in  May, 
1824 — His  tranquillity  is  suddenly  disturbed  by  distressing  cries 
of  alarm  from  a  neighbouring  farm. 

March  1st,  1818. — As  I  had  from  the  first  formed 
the  phm  of  attending  particularly  to  the  breeding  of 
sheep,  as  the  easiest  and  most  profitable  occupation  that 
could  be  pursued  in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  I  did  not  em- 
barrass myself  by  attempting  to  bring  a  large  quantity 
of  land  under  cultivation,  and  I  applied  myself  there- 
fore to  the  tillage  of  my  farm  no  more  than  was  suffi- 
cient to  supply  my  own  consumption.  I  kept  my  atten- 
tion steadily  fixed  on  the  raising  of  wool,  as  a  commo- 
dity, should  the  value  of  the  carcass  fail,  of  easy  con- 
veyance, compared  with  corn,  and  of  certain  sale  as  an 
article  of  export. 

Decemler  31,  1818, — Divided  my  sheep  into  two 
flocks.     Their  numbers  stand  thus  : — 

In  jMarch  last  I  find  the  numbers  702.  Since  then, 
lambs  dropped  in  October  from  the  180  old  ewes — ewes, 
118;  wethers,  100=218  lambs.  The  100  young  ewes 
dropped  in  November  62  ewe  lambs  and  58  wethers= 
120. 

This  makes— old  flock  .  .  .702 

Old  ewes'  lambs  .  .  .  .  218 

Young  ewes'  lambs       .  .  .  .  120 

1040 
(106) 


Increase  of  my  Flocks.    107 

Deducting  from  tliis  number  84  head  consumed  on 
the  form,  my  two  flocks  amount  to  956.  My  working 
bullocks  are  the  same  as  before,  namely  eight.  My  six 
cows  have  produced  me  six  more  calves,  raising  my 
stock  of  cattle  to  18,  besides  the  working  bullocks. 
***** 

I  was  a  little  puzzled  to  know  what  to  do  with  my 
wool,  the  expense  of  carting  it  to  town  being  great. 
An  agent  of  one  of  the  merchants  offered  me  three- 
pence per  pound  to  take  it  away  at  his  own  expense, 
which,  after  some  consideration,  I  thought  it  best  to 

accept. 

*  *  *  -x-  * 

I  worked  hard  this  year  at  my  fencing,  which  is  one 
of  the  most  diflScult,  laborious,  and  expensive  of  a  new 
settler's  operations ;  but  if  it  can  be  done  without  en- 
croaching too  much  on  his  funds,  it  amply  repays  the 
labour  and  outlay ;  I  mean  the  fencing  in  of  his  corn- 
fields, paddocks,  sheep-yards,  and  homesteads. 

I  have  not  said  much  about  the  snakes  to  be  seen  all 
over  the  colony.  We  have  killed  a  great  many  of  them, 
but  we  have  never  been  bitten  by  them.  They  always 
avoid  you,  and  arc  glad  to  get  out  of  your  way.  I  have 
"^re  or  two  anecdotes  to  relate  of  them,  which  I  may  as 
well  introduce  here. 

I  was  one  day  walking  with  my  shepherd,  and  ob- 
serving the  sheep,  when  being  tired,  we  sat  down  on 
the  grass;  there  was  dead  wood  scattered  around.  I 
bad  only  just  seated  myself,  when  turning  my  head  I 
beheld  a  monstrous  black  snake  close  behind  me  ;  it  was 
nearly  six  feet  long,  and  apparently  asleep,  at  least  it 
was  quite  motionless.     I  silently  pointed  nut  the  reptile 


108  Anecdotes  op  Snakes. 

to  the  stock-keeper,  and  drawing  from  my  pocket  the 
pistol  which  I  usually  carried,  and  which  was  loaded 
with  ball,  I  approached  cautiously  within  a  few  inches 
of  the  creature's  head,  intending  to  blow  its  brains  out. 
Drawing  the  trigger,  the  powder  flashed  in  the  pan,  but 
the  charge  having  escaped,  either  from  careless  ramming 
or  from  having  long  carried  it  about  in  my  pocket,  the 
remaining  powder  in  the  barrel  was  only  just  sufficient 
to  move  the  ball,  which  rolled  slowly  out  of  the  muzzle, 
and  dropping  on  the  snake's  head,  roused  it.  I  think  I 
never  was  in  such  a  terrible  fright  in  my  life  j  I  made 
sure  that  I  should  kill  the  snake  on  the  instant,  and 
there  I  was  on  one  knee  close  to  it,  and  without  the 
chance  of  escaping  if  it  made  a  dart  at  me.  By  some 
extraordinary  good  luck,  the  snake  was  frightened  too ; 
it  raised  up  its  head — looked  at  me  for  a  moment — and 
then  glided  away.  We  were  both  in  such  a  fright  that 
we  had  not  presence  of  mind  to  kill  it  with  sticks,  and 
so  it  escaped,  and  right  glad  were  we  to  escape  the 
danger. 

At  another  time,  I  was  looking  about  at  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  cottage,  in  the  autumn,  wheft  the  rivers  get 
very  low,  when  I  observed  on  the  opposite  side  of  a  deep 
pool  of  water  a  rustling  among  the  long  grass,  and  pres- 
ently the  head  of  a  snake  appeared  over  the  bank,  peer- 
ing with  curious  eye  into  the  pool  below.  I  judged, 
from  the  creature's  movements,  that  it  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  drink  out  of  this  pool,  and  was  disappointed 
to  find  the  water  so  low  as  to  be  out  of  its  reach.  It 
seemed  to  ponder  a  good  deal  on  this  state  of  things, 
turning  its  head  to  the  right  and  left,  as  if  to  devise 
some  means  of  getting  at  the  water.     At  last  it  turned 


Another  Snake  Story.  i09 

its  head  towards  the  long  wii-y  grass  around  it,  and 
selecting  an  appropriate  tuft  close  to  the  edge  of  the 
bank,  it  twisted  the  end  of  its  tail  round  the  grass,  and 
so  letting  itself  down  and  hanging  by  the  extremity  of 
its  tail,  it  was  enabled  to  roach  the  water.  It  then 
drank,  frequently  raising  up  its  head  as  a  fowl  does 
when  it  drinks.  I  was  observing  the  motions  of  the 
gentleman  all  the  time  with  much  curiosity,  and  with 
my  fowling-piece  ready  to  shoot  it  before  it  retired ;  for 
the  deadliest  war  is  the  constant  proclamation  of  the 
colony  against  all  snakes,  and  no  mercy  is  ever  shown  to 
this  most  dangerous  and  insidious  enemy.  I  fired  and 
killed  it.  It  measured  nearly  five  feet  and  a  half  in  length. 
I  shall  t(!ll  only  one  more  story  of  snakes.  I  was 
riding  on  the  other  side  of  the  colony,  about  twenty 
miles  from  ]jaunceston,  when  I  suddenly  came  upon  a 
snake  crossing  the  road ;  it  was  not  a  very  large  one, 
but  I  was  struck  with  the  remarkable  beauty  and  bril- 
liancy of  its  colours.  I  had  my  double-barrel  fowling- 
piece  slung  at  my  back,  as  was  usual  with  me,  and  in 
my  hand  I  had  one  of  the  little  straight  horsewhips 
used  on  horseback.  The  snake  crossed  just  before  me, 
and  T  stopped  immediately  and  alighted,  with  the  inten- 
tion of  killing  it,  urged  by  that  instinct  to  kill  a  snake 
wherever  seen,  which  becomes  added,  I  think,  to  our 
other  natural  instincts,  after  a  residence  in  the  colony. 
The  creature  moved  away  with  great  rapidity  towards 
some  trees  at  the  distance  of  about  a  hundred  and  fifty 
yards,  on  a  path  which  I  directly  saw  was  a  snake-track. 
I  had  great  difficulty  in  making  my  horse  follow  me  in 
this  chase.  When  I  came  up  to  the  reptile,  I  reached  out 
my  arm  and  gave  it  a  slash  on  its  tail  with  my  horse- 


110  A  Battle  with   Him. 

■whip.  This  made  it  stop,  and  turn  its  head  and  hiss, 
with  a  threat  to  dart  at  me.  Then  I  kept  back,  and  the 
snake  made  another  start,  till  I  brought  it  to  a  stand- 
still by  another  cut  of  my  whip.  I  could  see  no  broken 
bough  near  me  to  smash  it  with,  and  I  did  not  like  to 
dirty  my  fowling-piece  by  discharging  it. 

This  running  fight  lasted  for  some  score  of  yards,  till 
at  last  the  snake,  getting  exasperated,  turned,  and  stood 
at  bay.  I  relate  this  anecdote  principally,  because  of 
the  attitude  which  the  snake  now  assumed,  which  I  had 
often  seen  in  pictures,  but  never  before  in  nature.  The 
snake  coiled  itself  up  into  a  close  coil,  so  as  to  form  a 
good  foundation,  it  seemed,  for  a  spring.  It  reminded 
me,  in  this  attitude,  of  the  picture  of  the  snake  in  an 
old  edition  of  Milton's  "  Paradise  Lost,"  where  the 
serpent  is  represented  tempting  Eve.  This  resemblance 
occurred  to  me  while  I  was  fighting  it. 

We  now  had  a  grand  battle.     I   let  go   the  reign  of 

my  horse,  and  fought  the  snake  with   my  horsewhip,  I 

slashing  it  occasionally  round  the  neck  and  body,  and 

it  darting  out  at  me,  and  hissing  furiously,  with   its 

eyes  as  bright  as  diamonds.     It  was  rather  rash  of  me, 

I  confess,  but  I  was  excited  at  the  time,  and  did  not 

think  of  the  risk  that  I  ran.     I  could  not  master  it, 

however,  with  my  slight  weapon,  so  I  retired,  when  it 

immediately  made  off  again,  as  much  as  to  say,  "Let 

me  alone,  and  I'll  let  you  alone."     I  followed  it  till  I 

came  to  some  broken  boughs,  when  I  easily  killed  it  by 

a  blow  on  the  body. 

*  *  *  * 

On  looking  over  my  journal,  I  do  not  find  anything  de- 
serving of  particular  mention  up  to  1821.     I  ploughed, 


The   NEiaiiiio  r  hood  Increases.  Ill 

and  I  sowed,  and  I  reaped  in  due  order,  and  my  flocks 
and  herds  increased  without  much  attention  on  my  part, 
except  to  keep  them  together.  I  attended  carefully  to 
the  garden.  My  children  had  sufTercd  no  illness  since  I 
had  arrived  in  the  colony.  In  1821  some  new  settlers 
took  land  in  this  district,  and  the  place  began  to  assume 
the  appearance  of  becoming  more  inhabited. 

A  surgeon,  a  gcntlcman-likc  and  clever  man,  settled 
near  us;  but  there  was  nothing  for  him  to  do  except 
attending  to  an  occasional  accident.  A  blacksmith,  at 
the  close  of  this  year,  established  himself  on  the  banks 
of  the  Clyde,  and  this  was  a  great  convenience  to  us, 
during  this  year  1  planned  out  a  cut  from  a  river,  where 
a  natural  bend  afforded  the  facility  for  the  purpose  of 
erecting  a  flour-mill,  which  was  much  wanted,  as  there 
was  no  mill  nearer  than  camp,  fifty  miles  off;  and  we  had 
to  cart  our  wheat  down  to  the  town,  and  return  with  the 
flour — a  tedious  and  expensive  process.  I  had  to  manage 
with  a  hand-mill  for  my  own  use,  but  the  time  consumed 
in  grinding  corn  in  this  way  was  very  great,  and  the 
labour  of  it  was  distasteful  to  the  servants,  so  that  it  was 
frequently  out  of  order.  In  the  course  of  the  following 
year  I  erected  a  small  flour  mill,  with  an  undershot 
wheel,  which  answered  very  well,  and  its  cost  was  soon 
repaid  by  its  convenience  to  myself,  and  by  the  toll  which 
was  paid  to  me  by  my  neighbours  as  the  inhabitants  in- 
creased. 

In  1821,  a  careful  census  was  taken  of  the  statistics 
of  the  colony,  which  I  find  in  my  journal  to  stand 
thus : — 

Number  of  inhabitants,  7,185 ;  acres  in  cultivation, 
14,940;  sheep,  170,000;  cattle,  35,000;  horses,  350. 


112  My  Wealth  Increases. 

During  1822  two  magistrates  were  appointed  for  this 
district. 

May,  1824. — Matters  remained  mucli  as  usual  up  to 
May,  1824.  This  completes  my  seventh  year  in  the 
colony.  During  these  seven  years  the  colony  had  assumed 
a  very  different  appearance.  Numerous  emigrants  had 
arrived,  and  the  country  had  become  more  settled.  The 
value  of  sheep  had  risen  in  1821,  and  good  ewes  sold 
currently  for  20s.  a  head,  and  if  with  lambs  by  their  side, 
from  20s.  to  30s.  This  state  of  things  put  the  old  set- 
tlers who  had  attended  to  their  stock  in  fine  spirits,  for 
the  influx  of  settlers  kept  up  the  price  of'  stock  for  some 
years.  I  did  very  well  by  the  sale  of  mine,  and  had  the 
good  fortune  not  to  neglect  taking  advantage  of  the  op- 
portunity. I  realized  considerable  sums  by  the  sales 
which  I  made,  and  my  sheep  sold  well,  as  the  wool  was 
fine  enough  to  command  a  ready  sale  at  the  same  time 
that  the  carcass  was  heavy  enough  to  suit  the  new  set- 
tlers, who  wanted  sheep  as  meat  for  consumption.  I  find, 
on  referring  to  my  journal,  that  in  May,  1824,  my  stock 
stood  as  follows  : — 

Sheep— ewes,  3,650 ;  wethers,  290.     Total,  3940. 

Cattle— 75. 

Working  bullocks — 14. 

This  year  I  bought  three  horses,  two  mares  heavy  with 
foal  for  £50  and  60£,  and  a  gelding,  for  which  I  gave 
c£65,  for  my  own  riding,  as  my  circuits  began  to  be  too 
heavy  to  be  performed  on  foot.  I  was  in  Hobart  Town 
at  the  close  of  the  autunni  of  1821,  at  which  time  there 
was  more  than  one  excellent  hotel,  when,  in  walking 
about,  I  came  upon  a  bit  of  land,  about  half  an  acre 
(within  the  town  I  may  say),  and  covered  with  rubbish 


Sheep-Stealing  more  Frequent.  113 

and  stagnant  water  here  and  there,  and  looking  wretched 
and  neglected;  the  run  of  new  buildings  had  taken  a  turn 
in  another  direction,  and  this  piece  of  waste  had  been 
overlooked. 

Living  at  a  distance,  I  could  not  help  being  struck 
with  the  rapidity  with  which  the  town  was  increasing ; 
a  sightly  church  had  been  built;  a  new  court-house  in 
progress  of  completion ;  the  government  house  completed 
in  its  improved  state ;  there  was  a  talk  of  the  establish- 
ment of  a  bank ;  and  the  colony  was  thriving  and  im- 
proving rapidly.  I  took  all  these  things  into  considera- 
tion, and  was  surprised  to  find  this  plot  of  ground  ne- 
glected ;  but  so  it  was,  and  nobody  seemed  to  care  for  it. 
Having  spare  money  which  I  did  not  at  the  moment 
well  know  how  to  dispose  of,  I  made  inquiries  about  the 
owner  and  price,  and  found  that  I  might  have  the  lot  for 
a  hundred  pounds.  So  I  bought  the  bit  of  waste  land ; 
but  other  matters  distracting  my  attention  from  it,  I  did 
nothing  with  it  for  some  years  after.  What  was  done 
with  it  I  shall  have  to  relate  in  its  proper  place. 
*  *  *  * 

Sheep-stealing  had  been  rife  for  the  last  two  or  three 
years,  the  value  of  the  animal  making  it  a  great  temp- 
tation, and  the  facilities  for  driving  off  and  concealing 
sheep  being  considered,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at. 
One  or  two  bush-rangers  have  also  been  abroad;  I  was 
on  business  in  town  this  year  (1824),  and  heard  the  in- 
formation of  a  party  who  had  been  attacked  by  bush- 
rangers. It  made  a  very  disagreeable  impression  on  me, 
and  I  felt  very  uneasy  as  I  listened  to  it,  from  thinking 
that  my  own  family  was  exposed  at  that  moment  to  the 
same  disaster. 


114  Bush-Rangers  Abroad. 

I  could  not  sleep  all  niglit  after  hearing  this  news  of 
bush-rangers  being  out.  Hitherto  we  had  not  been  mo- 
lested at  the  Clyde,  but  it  occurred  to  me  that  the  arri- 
val there  of  fresh  emigrants  likely  to  have  money  and 
valuables  about  them,  and  new  to  the  country,  and 
thereby  more  easy  to  be  attacked,  might  tempt  the  con- 
victs to  go  up  there.  These  thoughts  kept  possession 
of  me  all  night,  and  I  could  not  resist  the  desire  of  re- 
turning home.  At  dawn  of  day,  therefore,  I  set  out, 
and  my  horse  being  fresh,  I  had  no  difl&culty  in  reaching 
the  Clyde  before  two  o'clock  the  same  day.  I  may  re- 
mark here  that  the  horses  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  are 
capable  of  enduring  great  fatigue ;  they  are  small,  but 
strong  and  hardy ;  sure-footed,  and  capable  of  support- 
ing their  work  on  the  natural  grass  of  the  country  on 
their  journeys.  *  *  *  j  -yyas  glad  to  find  all  safe  at 
home,  but  I  made  my  wife  rather  uneasy  by  my  report 
of  the  marauding  of  the  bush-rangers  at  Pitt  Water. 

This  information  about  the  sheep-stealing  coming  upon 
the  news  of  the  bush-rangers  at  Pitt  Water,  made  me  un- 
comfortable and  restless.    But  the  sight  of  my  family  and 

my  home  soon  restored  me  to  my  usual  cheerfulness. 
*  *  *  *  * 

Extract  from  my  journal  of  May,  1824  : — 
"  Kept  a  sharper  look-out  after  my  own  flocks.  Cer- 
tainly I  have  been  very  lucky  hitherto;  things  have 
thrived  with  me  most  prosperously.  I  am  now  in  pos- 
session of  a  numerous  flock  of  sheep ',  of  a  tolerable  herd 
of  cattle ;  I  have  forty -five  acres  of  land  under  tillage ; 
the  building  of  my  new  stone  house  proceeds  favourably; 
I  have  a  fair  portion  of  land  fenced  in ;  my  garden  has 
succeeded  admirably ;  I  have  all  sorts  of  English  vcgeta- 


Family   Matters.  115 

blc3  in  abundance ;  strawberries,  raspberries,  gooseber- 
ries, currants,  young  apple  and  pear  trees,  vigorous  and 
growing  fast. 

"  My  family,  now  increased  to  six,  begin  to  be  com- 
panions to  me ;  and  their  education,  even  in  this  out-of- 
the-way  place,  has  not  been  neglected.  The  place  is  be- 
coming settled  around  me,  which  although  it  curtails  the 
run  for  my  sheep  and  cattle,  increases  the  feeling  of  se- 
cm-ity,  and  affords  some  society. 

"  My  eldest  boy,  now  seventeen  years  of  age,  is  a  valu- 
able assistant  to  me,  and  affords  the  promise  of  becoming 
a  healthy,  intelligent,  and  honourable  man.  My  daughter 
Betsy  grows  a  fine,  handsome  girl ;  and  my  other  chil- 
dren are  healthy,  happy,  and  improving.  I  have  the  plea- 
surable feeling  of  caring  little  whether  my  consumption 
of  meat  and  flour  is  a  little  less  or  a  little  more.  Abund- 
ance reigns  around  me.  The  feeling  of  anxiety  with 
which  I  used  to  be  haunted  in  England,  in  respect  to  how 
my  children  could  be  made  certain  of  lodging,  food,  and 
clothes,  has  departed  from  me.  There  is  plenty  for  all ; 
and  the  dominant  desire  now  is  changed  to  that  of  be- 
coming wealthy.  To  be  sure,  we  still  live  rather* in  the 
rough ;  but  usage  has  made  it  familiar  to  us.  We  use  no 
fine  furniture,  wear  no  fine  clothes,  and  our  establishment 
still  bears  the  impress  of  a  settler's  early  life.  But  I  am 
rich  (for  independence  is  riches)  in  sheep  and  cattle,  and 
house  and  land.  My  large  room  has  become  furnished 
with  an  ample  supply  of  books,  and  I  find  recreation  and 
advantage  in  their  perusal. 

"  The  climate,  on  experience,  we  find  healthy,  though 
very  changeable,  and  subject  to  extreme  variations  of 
heat  and  cold.    I  find,  by  the  register  of  my  thermome- 


116  A  Great  Change. 

ter,  that  the  temperature  has  varied  thirty-two  degrees 
between  night  and  noon ;  being  below  freezing-point  in 
the  night,  and  above  sixty-three  at  twelve  and  one  o'clock. 
These  variations,  do  not  aiFect  the  health  of  any  of  us ; 
we/ecZ  the  cold, — that  is  all. 

"  This  year  we  have  added  fish  to  our  table.  We  threw 
a  net  across  a  narrow  part  of  the  river,  about  half  a  mile 
from  the  house,  and  we  now  obtain  a  plentiful  supply  of 
eels  at  most  times.  We  catch  also  a  small  fish  of  the  na- 
ture of  the  gudgeon,  but  larger,  which  we  call  the  fresh 
water  smelt.  But  the  rivers  in  this  colony,  at  least  the 
inland  portions  of  them,  are  not  prolific  offish;  nor  do 
the  large  lakes,  the  sources  of  several  of  them,  supply 
much.  Scarcely  a  fish,  indeed,  is  to  be  found  in  the  lakes 
of  the  colony.  There  is  plenty  of  wild  fowl  at  the  lakes ; 
I  have  seen  flocks  literally  of  thousands  of  wild  ducks  on 
one  of  them." 

But  to  return  to  my  Journal. 

Thus,  in  May,  1824,  all  things  prospered  with  me. 
But  now  the  uniform  life  which  I  had  led  for  some  years, 
experienced  a  great  change.  Just  before  the  winter,  that 
is,  toward  the  end  of  May,  1824,  we  were  sitting  round 
our  cheerful  fire,  and  the  servant  had  with  difficulty 
borne  in  a  huge  log  to  replenish  it;  it  was  about  nine 
o'clock,  and  quite  dark,  when  the  barking  of  the  dogs 
announced  the  arrival  of  a  stranger ;  he  was  on  horseback, 
as  we  could  hear  from  the  sound  of  the  horse's  hoofs  on 
the  hard  ground.  He  was  quickly  shown  into  the  house, 
and  according  to  the  custom  of  the  colony,  food  and 
drink  were  placed  before  him  ere  he  was  troubled  with 
any  questions.  But  he  was  eager  to  communicate  the 
tidings  with  which  he  was  charged. 


BDSHRA'NGERS    AEIiOAD    —    THE    ALAKvI. 


StautliiNG   Outcries.  117 

Information  had  been  received  by  tbc  government  of 
the  escape  of  a  body  of  convicts  from  Macquarie  Har- 
bour, who  were  spreading  consternation  over  the  district 
of  Pitt  "Water,  where  they  had  plundered  and  ill-used 
many  settlers,  and  where  they  had  been  joined  by  fur- 
ther bands  of  convict  servants.  Our  guest  was  in  haste 
to  communicate  the  intelligence  to  the  resident  magis- 
trates, as  it  was  thought  likely  that  the  band  of  bush- 
rangers would  turn  their  steps  to  this  district,  as  being 
unprotected,  and  abounding  to  the  west  in  places  of 
concealment. 

We  were  still  in  earnest  conversation  on  this  alarming 
news,  and  I  was  hastily  revolving  in  my  mind  the  best 
means  of  guarding  against  an  attack,  when  loud  cries, 
seemingly  for  help,  from  the  opposite  side  of  the  river, 
on  which  a  new  settler  had  lately  fixed  himself,  caused 
us  suddenly  to  break  up  our  party.  I  lost  no  time  in 
preparing  our  arms,  which  from  habit  were  always  kept 
in  a  state  of  efficiency,  and  calling  in  two  of  my  men  on 
whom  I  could  entirely  depend,  I  entrusted  them  with  a 
musket  a-piece,  and  made  such  preparations  for  our 
own  defence  as  the  circumstances  afforded. 

Crab,  who  had  now  become  part  of  the  family,  under- 
took to  defend  the  house ;  and  after  a  hasty  consulta- 
tion, we  agreed  that  it  would  not  be  kind  or  manly  to 
abandon  our  neighbours  in  their  distress  and  difficulty. 
I  was  perplexed  to  contrive  how  to  render  them  the  re- 
quisite assistance,  and  to  leave  a  sufficient  defence  at 
home,  when  a  fresh  and  violent  barking  of  the  dogs 
caused  us  a  further  alarm.  The  night  was  quite  dark, 
but  the  stars  shone  brightly.  The  dogs  barked  fuii- 
ously,  and  it  was  plain  to  us,  who  were  acquainted  with 


118  Go  toRender  Help. 

the  language  of  their  warnings,  that  they  were  excited  by 
the  approach  of  some  unusual  object,  and  of  more  than 
a  single  individual. 

Seeing  the  necessity  of  prompt  and  decisive  action,  I 
advanced  from  the  door  of  the  cottage,  being  protected 
in  the  rear  by  one  of  the  men.  A  voice  amidst  the  tu- 
mult called  out  to  me  to  call  off  the  dogs,  who  were  fu- 
rious. I  thought  I  recognised  the  voice  of  the  speaker, 
and  it  proved  to  be  a  neighbour  who  had  settled  about 
four  miles  off.  He  had  been  going  his  rounds  to  look 
after  his  sheep,  marauders  being  abroad,  when,  approach- 
ing within  half  a  mile  of  my  cottage,  his  attention  had 
been  attracted  by  the  cries  which  had  alarmed  us.  He 
was  well  armed,  and  accompanied  by  two  friends,  also 
well  armed. 

Cheered  by  this  reinforcement,  I  lost  no  time  in  ac- 
quainting them  with  the  news  of  the  escape  of  the  con- 
victs from  Macquarie  Harbour,  and  of  my  fears  that  our 
new  neighbour  was  in  the  hands  of  the  bush-rangers. 
They  at  once  agreed  to  lend  him  their  help ;  and  as  I 
was  well  acquainted  with  the  point  where  the  river  could 
be  best  crossed,  and  my  home  being  now  secure  from 
any  sudden  attack,  we  advanced  without  delay  to  the 
scene  of  danger.  But  as  this  forms  one  of  the  epochs 
of  my  life,  I  must  reserve  the  account  of  the  adventures 
and  disasters,  which  now  came  thick  upon  me,  to  an- 
other chapter. 


Cjinjitu  (EUiitntli. 


Hastens  with  a  party  of  friends  to  his  neiglihour's  assistance — Tho 
dangerous  passage  of  the  river  on  the  trunk  of  a  tree — The  lifeless 
body  of  a  young  girl  strangely  discovered — The  plundered  dwell- 
ing, and  the  desolate  mother. 

The  family  -which  we  were  hastening  to  help  had  not 
arrived  on  their  land  more  than  three  weeks,  and  con- 
sisted of  a  Mr.  Moss,  his  wife,  a  daughter  about  seven- 
teen, and  two  young  boys  of  seven  and  six  years  of  age. 
They  had  been  well  off  at  one  time,  but  a  succession  of 
misfortunes  had  reduced  their  means  to  an  income  too 
small  for  a  bare  subsistence  in  England,  but  amply  suf- 
ficient for  a  prosperous  establishment  in  Van  Diemen's 
Land.  Mrs.  Moss  had  been  highly  educated,  and  her 
daughter  was  possessed  of  more  than  the  usual  accom- 
plishments of  her  age,  and  of  their  former  station.  Tho 
arrival  of  this  young  lady  at  our  settlement  seemed,  as 
a  young  friend  of  mine  expressed  himself,  "  like  the 
springing  up  of  a  beautiful  flower  in  the  wilderness." 
AVe  all  felt  a  strong  interest  in  these  new  settlers,  and 
we  were  ready  to  risk  much  to  serve  them. 

While  my  friends  put  themselves  in  fighting  order,  I 
buckled  my  old  cavalry  broad-sword  round  me  so  as  not 
to  interfere  with  my  movements,  for  having  served  in  the 
yeomanry  in  Surrey,  I  had  ever  after  a  liking  for  the 
weapon,  to  which  1  felt  I  could  trust  in  case  of  close 
conflict ;  and  with  my  double-barrel  fowling-piece  slung 

(119) 


120  Dangerous  Tassage  of  the  River. 

over  my  back,  and  my  large  horse-pistols  in  the  pockets 
of  my  sliooting-jacket,  I  led  the  way  across  the  river. 
My  companions  followed  cautiously  and  silently  in  In- 
dian file.  It  was  quite  dark,  with  the  exception  of  such 
glimmering  light  as  the  brilliancy  of  the  stars  afforded. 
It  was  my  plan  to  cross  the  river  by  the  trunk  of  a 
tree,  which  had  fallen  over  from  the  opposite  bank,  and 
formed  a  natural  bridge,  a  rough  one,  and  not  easily  to 
be  passed  by  day;  and  in  the  dark,  the  passage  over  it 
was  rather  a  dangerous  experiment.  There  was  a  dead 
silence  around,  which  seemed  more  terrible  than  the 
cries  by  which  we  had  recently  been  alarmed,  and  filled 
us  with  ominous  fears  for  the  fate  of  our  neighbours. 

We  quickly  reached  the  crossing-place,  and  in  a  low 
whisper  I  warned  my  companions  of  the  dangerous 
points  of  the  bridge.  My  young  neighbour,  Beresford, 
was  particularly  anxious  on  this  occasion.  I  did  not 
remark  it  at  the  time,  as  we  were  all  active  and  excited; 
but  subsequent  events  made  me  remember  it.  The  river 
at  this  spot  is  narrow,  and  flows  with  the  rapidity  of  a 
mountain  torrent.  I  observed  in  the  gloom  that  Beres- 
ford's  two  companions  hesitated  at  the  sight  of  this  dif- 
ficulty. 

"  I  wish  we  had  light  for  this  work,"  said  one  ;  "  1 
can  sec  the  foam  of  the  water,  and  I  think  I  can  see 
something  which  I  suppose  is  the  tree  lying  across  it ; 
but  it's  an  awkward  job  this." 

"  Speak  low,"  said  I;  "you  don't  know  what  ears  may 
be  listening  to  you." 

"  Speak  low  ! — why,  the  roaring  of  this  water  is 
enough  to  drown  all  the  noise  that  we  shall  make  on 
this  side.     The  river  seems  to  be  angry  to-night.     I 


I  Lead  the  Way.  121 

hope  you  arc  sure  of  your  tree-bridge.  I  should  not 
like  to  find  myself  in  that  boiling  gulf  below ;  if  I  did, 
I'm  inclined  to  think  no  one  else  would  find  me." 

"It's  an  ugly  sight,"  said  the  first  speaker ;  "but  if 
Thornlcy  is  sure  of  the  passage,  I'll  venture  it;  and 
don't  let  us  lose  any  time,  for  if  we  are  to  do  any  good, 
we  must  be  quick  about  it." 

"Well,  we  are  in  for  it;  we  can't  go  back;  who  leads 
the  way  V 

"I'll  lead  the  way,"  said  Bercsford;  "I'm  the 
youngest  of  the  party ;  now,  follow  me." 

"  No,"  said  I,  "  that's  my  business ;  I  know  the  pas- 
sage best.  ..." 

"Perhaps  not  better  than  I  do,"  said  Bercsford; 
''come  on." 

"  How  can  that  be?"  said  I;  "you  have  not  occa- 
sion to  cross  the  river  so  often  as  I  have." 

Bercsford  said  something  which  the  noise  of  the  waters 
prevented  me  from  hearing.  I  led  the  way,  and  began 
to  crawl  over  on  my  hands  and  knees. 

I  must  confess  that  it  was  not  without  a  momentary 
tremor  that  I  beheld  the  white  foam  of  the  torrent  dash- 
ing furiously  past  beneath  me.  A  single  false  movement 
was  death ;  and  the  disagreeable  feeling  came  over  me, 
that  if  an  enemy  should  have  had  the  foresight  to  guard 
tbis  point,  I  and  my  companions,  in  our  defenceless  posi- 
tion were  exposed  to  sure  destruction. 

With  these  thoughts  agitating  me,  and  the  darkness  of 
the  night,  the  incessant  rushing  of  the  water,  and  the 
danger  of  our  expedition,  all  tending  to  inspire  doubt 
and  fear,  it  is  impossible  to  describe  my  sensations,  wlien, 
stretching  forward  my  arm  to  feel  the  way  before  me,  my 


122  A  Thrill  op  Horror. 

hand  encountered  "what  seemed  to  be  a  human  head  of 
hair.  I  was  clinging  to  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  in  a  po- 
sition disabling  me  from  the  use  of  my  weapons,  nor  in- 
deed did  the  necessity  of  holding  fast  allow  me  to  have 
more  than  one  hand  momentarily  disengaged  in  my 
creeping  posture.  All  sorts  of  fears  were  instantly  con- 
jured up  in  my  horror  and  bewilderment. 

My  first  thought  was  that  the  bush-rangers,  suspect- 
ing our  intention,  were  lying  in  ambush,  and  every  in- 
stant I  expected  to  receive  a  volley  from  the  oj^posite 
bank.  Then  visions  of  the  natives  arose,  and  I  actually 
crouched  up,  the  better  to  defend  myself  against  the 
shower  of  spears  which  I  knew  would  be  the  beginning 
of  their  attack.  My  companions  behind  me,  embar- 
rassed by  my  stoppage,  and  not  knowing  the  cause,  urged 
me  to  proceed,  as  the  swift  running  of  the  white  waters 
beneath  their  eyes  was  beginning  to  produce  giddiness. 
For  nearly  a  minute  I  was  totally  at  a  loss  what  to  do. 
At  last  the  mist  with  which  the  sudden  alarm  had  enve- 
loped my  brain  began  to  disperse ;  I  reasoned  with  my- 
self rapidly  and  decisively. 

I  knew  that  to  go  back  over  our  perilous  bridge  was, 
in  the  dark,  and  encumbered  as  we  were  with  our  arms, 
impossible.  Go  on  we  must.  As  I  formed  this  resolu- 
tion, it  suddenly  occurred  to  me  that  the  form  before  me 
must  be  in  the  same  embarrassment  as  to  advancing  or 
retreating  as  myself;  and  that  at  any  rate  the  chances 
were  equal  in  the  event  of  a  struggle  for  mastery.  Em- 
])oldencd  by  this  tliought,  I  stretched  out  my  hand 
again,  and  met  with  the  same  object.  It  seemed  cer- 
tainly a  human  head  !  It  was  motionless,  and  had  re- 
mained, as  well  as  I  could  judge,  in  the  precise  position 


A  L 1  f  K  L  E  s  s  Female  Form.         123 

in  which  my  hand  lighted  on  it  before.  But  the  second 
time,  the  hair  struck  me  as  being  softer,  and  the  sensa- 
tion flashed  across  me  that  it  was  not  a  man's  hair  that 
I  was  feeling.  My  wonder  increased  by  this  new  dis- 
covery, and  my  fears  yielding  to  my  excitement,  I  ex- 
tended my  arm,  and  traced  the  long  ringlets  of  a  woman ! 
My  alarm  was  now  changed  to  wonderment  and  horror. 
Laying  my  hand  on  her  face,  I  found  it  deadly  cold ;  her 
arms  were  encircled  round  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  but 
they  hung  lifeless,  and  I  at  once  guessed  that  the  female, 
whoever  she  might  be,  in  attempting  to  cross  the  river 
by  this  dangerous  place,  rendered  more  dangerous  and 
frightful  by  the  darkness,  had  been  terrified  by  the  roar 
of  the  raging  waters,  and  had  fainted. 

What  to  do  in  this  unexpected  dilemma,  I  was  at  a 
loss  to  imagine.  My  companions  began  to  be  alarmed, 
and  the  infection  of  superstitious  fear  was  beginning  to 
unnerve  them.  In  these  perplexing  and  dangerous  cir- 
cumstances, I  felt  the  necessity  of  coming  to  some  prompt 
decision.  The  female  before  me  had  evidently  either 
fainted,  or  perhaps  overcome  by  fear  and  exhausting  ex- 
citement, was  dead !'  But  her  lifeless  body  formed  an 
obstacle  to  our  further  progress,  and  I  considered  that, 
at  that  very  moment,  while  I  was  deliberating,  the  work 
of  death  might  be  going  on  among  our  neighbours  whom 
we  were  endeavouring  to  succour,  and  that  our  assistance 
was  prevented  by  an  impediment  to  whom  all  help  per- 
haps now  was  vain. 

»  With  this  feeling — that  four  lives  were  at  stake  on  the 
trunk  of  the  tree,  trusting  to  my  guidance,  and  that  other 
lives  were  jeopardized  by  the  delay  of  our  assistance,  the 
exquisitely  painful  thought  came  over  me,  that  stern  ne- 


124         Danger  Makes    me  Calm. 

cessity  justified  the  sacrifice  of  the  one  for  the  many,  and 
that  we  must  risk  the  dislodging  of  the  body  of  the  wo- 
man for  the  purpose  of  completing  our  passage  across  the 
river.  The  form  lay  motionless,  and  on  the  balance  on 
the  slippery  trunk  of  the  tree ;  the  slightest  motion  was 
sufficient  to  overturn  it  into  the  boiling  and  roaring  gulf 
below!  3Iy  companions  urged  me  to  proceed.  I  ex- 
plained to  them  in  a  few  words  the  cause  of  my  stoppage ; 
but  they  still  continued  to  press  me  to  go  forward,  their 
fear  of  the  present  peril  overcoming  their  apprehension 
of  the  remoter  hazard,  should  the  bush-rangers  be  in 
ambush  on  the  other  side,  and  waiting  for  us  to  rise  up 
to  get  the  surer  aim ;  they  vehemently  and  angrily  com- 
plained that  they  could  no  longer  keep  their  hold,  and 
that  they  could  neither  recede  nor  advance. 

Impelled  by  the  imminency  of  the  danger,  my  senses 
benumbed  by  the  cold,  and  my  mind  confused  by  the  un- 
ceasing roaring  and  foaming  of  the  furious  waters,  my 
presence  of  mind  almost  forsook  me.  I  stretched  out  my 
hand  again :  the  form  was  still  motionless — but  I  traced 
the  outline  of  the  small  and  delicate  features  of  that  cold 
face,  and  quick  as  lightning  the  thought  of  my  own 
daughter  flashed  across  me.  That  thought  restored  my 
wandering  senses.  I  became  instantly  calm  and  col- 
lected :  and  with  a  sort  of  desperate  energy  I  raised  my- 
self to  a  sitting  posture  across  the  tree,  and  propelling 
myself  with  my  hands  towards  the  object  before  me,  I 
took  firm  hold  of  her  long  tresses  to  prevent  the  body 
from  slipping  from  its  dangerous  resting-place.  All  con- 
tinued to  be  still  around,  except  the  noise  of  the  river. 
I  now  raised  my  voice  to  overtop  the  roaring  of  the  wa- 
ters, and  turning  my  head  towards  my  wondering  com- 


Beresford  Saves  Her!  125 

panions,  I  coramiinicated  to  them  my  intention  to  pre- 
serve the  body,  dead  or  alive. 

"  It  is  the  form,"  said  I,  "  of  a  young  girl." 

"  A  young  girl !"  exclaimed  Beresford.    "Then " 

"  In  the  name  of  Heaven,"  said  the  man  behind  him, 
"do  not  stay  talking.  Man  or  woman,  young  or  old, 
we  must  pass  now  to  the  other  side.  Necessity  has  no 
law.  Move  on  quickly,  for  I  shall  not  be  able  to  hold 
on  half  a  minute  longer." 

"Yes,"  cried  out  the  hindermost,  "move  on — move 
on — I  dare  not  attempt  to  move  backwards.  As  it  is, 
the  cold  has  so  benumbed  me,  and  I  am  so  giddy  with 
the  roaring  of  these  waters  under  me,  that  every  moment 
I  expect  to  slip  off.  Move  on,  I  say ;  this  is  no  time 
for  fine  feelings ;  our  own  lives  are  at  stake.  We  are 
lying  here  to  be  murdered,  if  there  are  really  bush- 
rangers abroad — and  this  affair  looks  like  it.     Move  on, 

I  say,  or  by I  shall  be  tempted  to  make  a  way  for 

myself." 

"  Stop,"  said  Beresford;  "  stop — for  God's  sake,  stop. 
I  have  a  horrible  presentiment  of  who  this  poor  girl  must 
be.  We  must  make  an  effort  to  save  her.  Let  me  try 
to  pass  you  (speaking  to  me) ;  or  stay — I  think  I  see  a 
branch  below  that  the  water  is  rushing  against ;  I  will 
make  the  attempt  to  save  her  if  I  perish." 

With  that  my  young  friend,  passing  his  fowling-piece 
to  me  to  hold  for  him,  threw  himself  by  a  bold  and  ac- 
tive movement  under  the  tree;  and  clinging  by  the 
broken  boughs,  by  a  succession  of  desperate  struggles 
succeeded  in  gaining  a  position  on  the  other  side  of  the 
female,  where  the  thick  part  of  the  trunk  afforded  a  surer 
footing.     He  then  gradually  drew  the  motionless  form 


126  We  Approach  the  Hut. 

towards  liim,  and  taking  it  in  his  arms,  bore  it  to  a  small 
distance  from  tlie  river,  and  laid  it  on  the  grass,  glisten- 
ing with  the  white  frost.  In  the  meantime  we  had  all 
succeeded  in  crossing  the  bridge  safely;  and  the  men 
finding  themselves  on  firm  ground,  soon  recovered  their 
presence  of  mind  and  courage,  and  were  ready  for  action. 
There  was  no  time  to  be  lost.  The  spot  which  we  had 
to  reach  was  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  mile  distant,  and 
we  were  all  eager  to  move  forward.  But  what  was  to  be 
done  with  the  lifeless  female  ?  Young  Beresford  had 
been  endeavouring  to  restore  warmth  by  chafing  the 
hands  of  the  inanimate  body,  but  without  success.  It 
seemed  as  dangerous  to  leave  it  on  the  cold  ground, 
should  life  be  not  quite  extinct,  as  to  bear  it  with  us. 
But  decision  was  necessary;  and  yielding  to  the  en- 
treaties of  Beresford,  whose  interest  in  the  inanimate 
form  seemed  overpowering,  we  hastily  agreed  that  he 
should  bear  the  body  with  us,  while  I  advanced  before, 
being  best  acquainted  with  the  locality,  his  two  friends 
following  close  after  me.  In  this  order  we  approached 
the  spot  where  our  new  neighbour  had  raised  his  homely 
dwelling. 

As  I  neared  the  place,  my  foot  lighted  on  a  soft  sub- 
stance, which  induced  me  to  stoop  down  to  examine  it. 
It  was  a  dead  kangaroo  dog.  I  felt  it,  and  found  that 
its  brains  had  been  dashed  out  by  some  heavy  instru- 
ment. This  occurrence  foreboded  danger,  and  we  pro- 
ceeded rapidly  and  silently,  but  with  increased  caution. 
The  outline  of  the  hut  now  loomed  through  the  dark ; 
all  was  silent.  We  were  perplexed  how  to  proceed  j  we 
could  see  no  enemy,  and  feared  some  plot  to  entrap  us. 
We  continued  our  advance,  however,  to  the  door  of  the 


An  Appalling   Sioht.  127 

hut  in  a  lino,  young  Bcrcsford  bearing  the  body  in  the 
rear.  I  held  his  fowling-piece  in  my  hand,  with  my 
own  slung  behind  me.  We  reached  the  door ;  it  was 
fastened,  but  wc  thought  we  could  distinguish  stifled 
breathing  within.  We  knocked  ;  no  answer.  AVe  were 
impressed  with  the  conviction  that  the  enemy,  whoever 
it  might  be,  was  there. 

I  directed  Beresford,  in  a  whisper,  to  take  the  body 
to  the  side  of  the  hut,  that  it  might  be  out  of  the  line 
of  fire  from  the  windows  and  door.  Then,  with  one  dash 
of  my  foot,  I  burst  the  door  from  its  hinges,  and  we 
three  rushed  in.  A  scream,  so  deep,  so  piercing,  so 
full  of  mortal  fear  and  agony,  that  it  even  now  thrills 
through  me  as  I  recall  it,  arrested  our  steps.  But  I 
guessed  on  the  instant  the  real  state  of  the  case.  On 
the  hearth  the  embers  were  still  red.  Snatching  a 
handful  of  thatch  from  the  roof,  I  made  a  blaze.  That 
lisht  revealed  to  me  the  form  of  a  woman,  crouched  in 
a  corner,  bound,  with  two  young  children  beside  her. 
The  transient  blaze  of  the  lighted  grass  ceased,  and  we 
were  again  in  darkness. 

*'  Oh,  God  !"  cried  the  woman,  "  are  you  come  again  ? 
I  have  never  spoken — not  one  word — indeed  I  have  not 
— and  the  children  have  scarcely  breathed — but  if  you 
are  determined " 

''We  are  friends,"  said  I,  "  come  to  assist  you;  we 
heard  your  cries " 

"Oh,  why  did  you  not  come  sooner? — my  husband 
— my  child — my  daughter,  where  is  she  ? — she  ran  out 
to  get  help — is  she  drowned  ? — what  have  they  done 
with  her? — my  God  !  my  God!  shall  I  ever  recover 
the  horrors  of  this  dreadful  night?" 


128    Endeavour  to  Restore  Life. 

While  slie  spoke  these  words,  "wliich  pierced  our  very 
souls,  and  filled  us  with  the  most  fearful  forebodings, 
one  of  my  neighbour's  friends  had  again  lighted  up 
some  thatch  on  the  hearth,  which  threw  a  glare  around, 
and  enabled  us  to  see  about  us ;  fortunately,  a  candle 
which  had  been  extinguished  was  found  close  at  hand ; 
this  afforded  us  a  dim  and  dismal  light. 

Beresford,  who  heard  the  scream,  had  caught  the 
words  of  the  mother,  and  while  I  stationed  one  of  our 
party  at  the  door  of  the  hut,  and  another  at  the  back, 
he  hastily  brought  in  the  body  of  the  apparently  lifeless 
girl.  The  mother,  whom  I  had  unbound,  did  not  speak; 
she  gazed  on  the  body  of  her  child  in  speechless  agony. 

"  She  is  dead ;"  at  last  she  muttered — "  she  is  dead ! — 
they  have  killed  her  ! — better  so,  perhaps,  than  worse  ! 
What  may  have  happened?  Am  I  awake,  or  is  it  a 
dream  ?  Oh,  no — it  is  all  real — cold  and  dead — cold  and 
dead !" 

A  passionate  burst  of  tears  followed  these  words,  ut- 
tered in  all  the  calmness  of  despair,  and  the  children, 
now  recovering  from  their  stupor,  mingled  their  cries 
with  the  bursting  sobs  of  the  mother." 

But  my  young  friend  was  not  inactive  during  this  pain- 
ful scene.  With  wonderful  coolness  and  presence  of  mind, 
he  took  all  the  steps  that  were  likely  to  restore  conscious- 
ness, if  life  remained ;  and  the  energies  of  the  mother 
beginning  to  revive,  she  presently  added  her  assistance 
He  had  placed  the  body  of  the  poor  girl  on  a  rough 
wooden  couch,  with  her  feet  close  to  the  fire,  which  was 
now  blazing  up  briskly.  The  mother  rubbed  her  feet, 
and  my  friend  chafed  her  hands ;  but  life  seemed  to  havo 
departed.     The   mother  said   nothing,  but  worked   on 


Friends  Join  Us.  129 

silently,  the  two  children  looking  on  in  trembling  expec- 
tation. I  stood  by,  racking  my  brain  to  remember  all 
the  means  that  I  had  read  or  heard  of  to  restore  sus- 
pended animation.  There  was  no  apparent  injury,  her 
mother  assured  us,  to  cause  death,  and  our  hopes  revived 
even  at  the  faint  prospect  of  restoration  which  this  intel- 
ligence afforded  us.  All  that  I  have  related,  since  we 
began  to  cross  the  river,  took  place  in  less  than  twenty 
minutes,  so  that  the  possibility  of  life  being  not  yet  quite 
extinct  still  remained ;  but  the  hope  became  every  mo- 
ment less  and  less. 

While  we  were  thus  employed  and  thus  agitated  with 
our  various  fears — the  mother  for  her  child,  the  young 
man  for  the  beautiful  girl  before  us — and  I,  as  a  parent, 
entering  into  the  bitter  sorrows  of  their  weeping  mother, 
we  heard  loud  shouts  proceeding  from  the  direction  of 
the  place  where  we  had  recently  crossed  the  river,  and 
presently,  at  a  rapid  pace,  a  party  of  friends  joined  us. 

The  news  of  "bush-rangers  abroad"  had  quickly 
spread  from  neighbour  to  neighbour,  and  the  present 
party  having  assembled,  they  learnt  at  my  house  our  ex- 
pedition and  its  object,  and  immediately  started  to  sup- 
port us.  They  had  crossed  at  a  point  of  the  river  higher 
up,  but  affording  an  easier  and  a  safer  passage.  Fortu- 
nately the  gentlemen  who  had  settled  among  us  as  a  sur- 
geon was  among  the  party,  and  his  attention  was  imme- 
diately directed  to  the  apparently  lifeless  form  of  the 
beautiful  young  girl. 

It  was  a  moment  of  most  painful  expectation.  He  felt 
her  pulse  long  and  anxiously.  I  saw  his  countenance 
change.  He  held  before  her  lips  a  small  pocket  looking 
glass,  which  he  first,  with  professional  coolness,  carefully 
wiped.     He  inspected  it  once — twice  ! 


130   Efforts  to  Kestore  Life. 

"  Place  her,"  said  he,  "  on  her  side." 

It  was  done. 

Again  he  applied  the  glass  to  her  lips.  It  was  untar- 
nished. 

''  Throw  more  wood  on  the  fire/'  said  the  surgeon. 
"  Light  wood — quick — make  it  blaze  up." 

He  applied  the  glass  again. 

Gradually  his  countenance  changed  from  the  expres- 
sion of  hopelessness  which  had  saddened  it,  and  suddenly 
it  lighted  up  as  the  brightness  of  the  glass  became  ob- 
scured.    We  were  breathless. 

"  Hush  !"  said  he.  "  Be  calm,"  addressing  her  mother. 
"  All  will  depend  on  your  coolness  and  presence  of  mind. 
If  you  can  command  your  feelings,  I  may  do  much.  She 
is  not  dead  !" 

Here  an  hysteric  sob  seemed  to  choke  the  mother, 
but  she  stifled  it ;  and,  with  hands  clenched,  and  cheeks 
streaming  with  silent  floods  of  tears,  she  sunk  on  her 
knees,  with  her  eyes  dimly  gazing  at  him  who  seemed  to 
be  her  guardian  angel. 

"  She  is  not  dead  !"  repeated  the  surgeon,  in  a  low 
tone.  "Life — I  think — I  am  sure — still  remains;  but 
the  slightest  shock  would  instantly  destroy  it.  Beware 
of  exciting  her  by  questions  or  by  disastrous  news, 
should  I  succeed  in  restoring  her  to  consciousness. 
Nothing  but  silence  and  soothing  will  save  her  from 
death  or  insanity.  Has  any  one  some  brandy  with 
him?" 

Fortunately  one  of  the  party — the  most  drunken  fel- 
low in  the  settlement — had  a  travelling  flask  of  rum, 
which,  indeed,  he  was  never  without.  It  was  quickly 
produced;  and,  after  its  owner  had  taken  a  sip  of  it, 


He  I  s  S  uccESSFUL.  131 

'•to  see."  as  he  said,  "that  it  was  the  right  stuff,"  he 
handed  it  to  the  surgeon.  I  am' inclined  to  think  that 
that  fiask  of  rum  saved  the  young  lady's  life,  but  it  cost 
its  proprietor  his  own  sooner  than  in  the  ordinary  course 
of  things,  for  from  that  moment  he  was  never  without  his 
flask,  always  emptied,  and  ever  refilled,  "  in  case,"  as 
ho  used  to  say,  ''  any  other  unfortunate  person  might 
chance  to  want  some  of  it ;  and  so,  on  the  strength  of 
the  life  that  he  boasted  it  had  saved,  he  hastened  the 
end  of  his  own. 

"  And  now,  gentlemen,"  said  the  surgeon,  "  be  pleased 
to  retire  from  the  hut,  and  leave  me  alone  with  this 
lady.  There  seems  to  be  more  work  for  you  to  do  before 
tills  family  can  be  set  to  rights." 

We  silently  obeyed.  I  was  the  last  who  quitted  the 
room ;  and  as  I  was  going  out  at  the  door,  the  poor 
mother  laid  her  hand  convulsively  on  my  arm,  and  with 
a  sort  of  desperate  calmness  whispered,  "  My  husband — 
have  they  murdered  him  ?" 

"  Surely  not,"  I  said;  "hope  for  the  best — you  see 
we  are  strong  enough  to  take  active  measures  for  his 
safety.  Depend  on  us  that  we  will  neglect  nothing  to 
find  him,  and  to  restore  him  to  you." 

"  I  am  sure  you  will.  See,  the  surgeon  is  trying  to 
pour  some  spirit  down  my  poor  child's  throat.  Now 
leave  us." 

All  this  time  Beresford  had  not  spoken  a  word.  I 
found  him,  as  I  passed,  stationed  close  to  the  door. 
There  was  a  light  outside  the  hut  now,  as  some  of  the 
party  had  kindled  a  fire  in  front  of  it,  which  threw  its 
glare  around  for  a  considerable  distance.  All  our  party 
now  assembled  together;  and  it  was  agreed  that  we 


132  I  AM  MADE  Leader. 

should  keep  watcla  round  the  place  during  the  night, 
and  that  at  daybreak  we  should  go  in  search  of  our 
neighbour.  We  made  a  diligent  examination  of  the 
parts  about,  as  we  conjectured  that  the  bush-rangers 
might  have  bound  and  gagged  him,  and  left  him  at  a 
distance  from  the  hut ;  but  we  could  find  no  traces  of 
him  or  of  them.  With  one  accord  I  was  chosen  the 
leader  of  the  present  expedition,  as  being  the  oldest 
settler,  and  the  one  best  acquainted  with  the  bush.  I 
had  mustered  my  party  with  the  view  of  allotting  to 
them  their  different  stations,  when  a  cry  from  the  hut 
arrested  our  attention,  and  young  Beresford  came  run- 
ning to  us,  and  crying  out, — 

''  She  is  saved  !  She  is  saved  !  She  is  alive  !  She  is 
breathing  !  And  now,"  said  he,  "  for  her  father;  that's 
the  next  thing  to  attend  to.  It's  the  first  inquiry  she 
will  make  when  she  recovers  her  senses,  and  if  she  should 
suspect  the  worst,  the  consequences  in  her  present  stjite 
I  am  sure  would  be  instantly  fatal." 

"That  is  our  object,"  said  I;  "we  must  find  the 
poor  fellow.  And  now  let  us  make  our  arrangements. 
There  are  twelve  of  us ;  I  dare  say  we  are  strong  enough 
to  cope  with  the  other  party ;  for  we  have  the  right  on 
our  side,  and  that  is  a  tower  of  strength.  I  propose 
that  at  break  of  day  we  should  remove  this  family  to 
my  cottage.  In  the  mean  time  it  is  necessary  that  we 
should  prepare  ourselves  for  bushing  it,  for  some  days 
perhaps.  Let  four  men  go  to  my  cottage,  and  procure 
all  the  necessaries  that  we  shall  want,  and  don't  forget 
the  kangaroo  rugs,  for  the  nights  are  cold,  and  we  shall 
need  them." 

"  Don't  forget  some  brandy,"  said  one. 


Prepare  to  Pursue  the  Rangers.  183 

*' Nor  the  tea  and  sugar,"  said  another;  'Hhcre's 
nothiug  like  a  cup  of  tea  in  the  bush  ;  it's  more  refresh- 
ing than  all  the  spirits  in  the  world." 

"Bring  plenty  of  pannikins,"  said  a  third;  "oi»o 
apiece  will  not  be  in  the  way." 

"Take  care  to  bring  plenty  of  rice,"  said  I;  "it  lies 
in  a  small  compass,  and  is  more  handy  for  the  bush  than 
flour;  but  tell  them  at  home  to  make  as  many  small 
dampers  as  we  can  carry ;  and  bring  away  all  the  baked 
bread  in  the  house.  My  men  will  help  you  to  carry  the 
things." 

"  How  are  your  powder-horns  ?"  said  young  Bcres- 
ford. 

"  Plenty  of  powder,  but  little  shot." 

"  Ask  for  the  bag  of  slugs  and  the  little  bag  of  balls, 
that  hang  by  my  bed's  head,"  said  I ;  "  and  bring  a  dozen 
or  two  of  spare  flints  with  you,  and  anything  else  that 
you  think  will  be  useful." 

"  Would  it  not  be  well,"  said  one,  "  to  give  notice  to 
the  magistrates  ?" 

"  Right,"  said  I ,  "  who  will  volunteer  to  go  over  the 
plain  this  dark  night,  and  tell  the  one  farthest  ofl"?" 

"That  will  I  do,"  said  a  spirited  young  fellow;  "I 
know  every  inch  of  the  way ;  if  I  meet  with  anything,  I 
will  fire  oft'  my  piece." 

"  You  can  tell  one  of  my  servants  to  apprise  the  other 
magistrate  of  this  night's  work,  as  his  house  is  in  a  line 
from  my  cottage.  If  he  is  at  home,  he  will  be  v,'itli  us 
by  daylight,  you  may  depend  on  it ;  for  he  is  young,  and 
has  no  wife  nor  child,  and  he  likes  these  expeditions.  It 
may  be  useful,  too,  to  have  a  magistrate  among  us  to 
sanction  our  proceedings,  so  ask  him  to  come  with  us,  and 


134  My  Dogs  Follow  Me. 

say  that  we  should  be  obliged  to  him  if  he  would  be  our 
leader ;  and  you  may  as  well  say  that  no  one  could  do  it 
so  well  as  himself.  There's  nothing  like  being  civil,  and 
we  all  like  to  be  flattered  a  bit.  Who  knows  what  it  is 
o'clock  ?" 

"  Not  eleven  yet." 

"Then  we  have  the  whole  night  before  us." 

"  And  so  have  the  bush-rangers ;  they  may  get  well 
away  before  morning." 

''No,"  said  another;  "  it  is  impossible  to  travel  fast 
on  a  night  so  dark  as  this.  Let  us  have  daylight  before 
us,  and  get  well  on  their  tracks,  and  they  can't  escape 
us." 

"  Shall  we  try  the  dogs  after  them  ?" 

"  No ;  the  kangaroo  dogs  are  of  no  use  as  bloodhounds; 
they  will  track  those  they  are  used  to  for  any  distance, 
but  they  don't  understand  being  set  to  track  strangers. 
But  we  must  take  some  dogs  with  us,  for  we  shall  want 
to  pull  more  than  one  kangaroo  for  our  dinners  before 
we  have  done,  I'm  thinking." 

"  Here  is  one  to  begin  with,"  said  I,  "  as  I  felt  a  cold 
nose  thrust  into  my  hand.  Hector  and  Fly  are  growing 
old  now,  but  here's  one  of  their  breed,  and  here's  an- 
other. They  have  found  me  out  you  see.  Now  let  some 
one  get  two  more,  so  that  the  four  may  not  all  belong 
to  one  party,  in  case  of  being  separated.  Sliall  we  take 
any  horses?  I  have  three  in  the  stable  and  four  more  in 
the  bush  that  are  sure  to  come  for  tlicir  corn  in  the  morn- 
ing. Perhaps  they're  in  the  open  stable  now,  for  they 
often  come  up  and  get  under  shelter  when  the  nights 
are  wet  or  cold." 

It  was    agreed   that    four  of  the   party  should  be 


The  11  est  of  that  Night.        135 

mounted,  to  act  as  scouts ;  but  as  it  was  likely  that  the 
marauders  would  choose  the  most  inaccessible  paths, 
■where  a  horseman  would  be  taken  at  great  disadvantage, 
it  was  thought  best  that  the  rest  of  the  party  should  be 
on  foot. 

"  Take  another  horse,  as  a  pack-horse,"  said  one,  ''  to 
carry  our  provisions,  and  let  one  of  your  men  lead 
him." 

"  A  bright  thought !"  said  I,  "  and  now  I  think  we 
shall  be  well  prepared  for  the  bush ;  and  so  I  recommend 
all  to  sleep  as  much  as  they  can  till  daylight,  that  we  may 
be  the  fresher  for  the  work." 

''Oh,  never  mind  sleep;  we  arc  too  much  excited  to 
sleep  to-night;  but  let  us  have  some  supper." 

"  Will  you  come  to  my  cottage,  or  stay  here  ?" 

"  Oh,  stay  here ;  we  will  not  leave  the  poor  woman 
to-night ;  no,  we'll  sup  here,  and  make  a  bush  night  of 
it  to  begin  with ;  but  it's  terribly  cold.  There,"  said 
the  speaker,  throwing  a  heavy  log  on  the  fire,  which 
made  the  sparks  fly  up  like  a  fire- work  ;  "  there's  some 
food  for  you ;  and  there's  another,  and  another.  By 
George,  we'll  have  a  jolly  fire,  and  make  a  merry  night 
of  it.     I  say,  how's  the  young  woman  ?" 

Beresford  required  no  further  hint  than  these  words ; 
looking  at  me,  I  gave  him  a  nod,  and  he  disappeared  in 
an  instant.  He  tapped  gently  at  the  door  of  the  hut, 
and  returning  to  us  immediately,  whispered  to  me — 

"  She  lives  !  she  has  not  spoken  ;  but  she  sleeps." 

"Good,"  said  I,  "and  now  do  you  sleep  too;  we 
shall  want  all  your  strength  to-morrow." 

He  smiled,  and  shook  his  head — "  I  will  never  sleep," 
said  he,  "  till  I  have  found  her  father." 


136  The   Mother's  Story. 

''  I  do  not  doubt,"  said  I,  "  that  you  will  spare  no  ex- 
ertion to  recover  him ;  and  now  let  us  try  to  get  some 
information  about  this  sad  affair.  Is  the  mother  cool 
enough  to  tell  us  her  story  ?  It  would  be  a  help  to  us 
to  know  something  of  the  character  and  numbers  of  the 
party  who  attacked  the  hut.  We  should  not  lose  any 
time  by  it,  as  it  would  be  useless  to  start  in  pursuit  of 
the  bush-rangers  till  daylight.  See  if  the  poor  lady  can 
leave  her  daughter  for  a  while ;  the  surgeon  can  sit  by 
her  while  the  mother  is  away ;  and  we  ought  to  know 
all  the  particulars  as  well  as  she  can  tell  them." 

Beresford  went  to  the  hut,  and  presently  returned 
with  Mrs.  Moss,  from  whom  we  were  happy  to  learn 
that  her  daughter  still  breathed  and  slept.  We  placed 
the  afflicted  lady  on  a  log  of  wood  before  our  bush-fire, 
and  our  sentinels  being  planted  in  suitable  places,  to 
guard  against  surprise,  she  described  the  attack  in  the 
following  terms. 


(!DIia|itn    d^niBlftji. 


The  attack  of  the  bush-rangers — The  mysterious  fate  of  the  lost 
husband — It  is  resolved  to  pursue  the  bush-rangers — Preparations 
for  the  expedition — The  magistrate  heads  the  party — Horriblo 
discovery. 

I  HARDLY  know  where  to  begin  :  I  have  very  little  to 
tell.  It  all  seems  now  to  have  passed  in  a  moment. 
We  were  sitting  round  the  fire,  I  and  my  husband,  and 
my  poor  Lucy,  and  the  two  children.  Since  we  came 
up  here,  my  husband  always  used  to  keep  his  gun  in  his 
hand,  or  else  close  by  him,  ready  for  use,  for  our  greatest 
horror  was  these  bush-rangers,  and  I  don't  know  really 
whether  I  was  most  frightened  to  see  him  always  carry- 
ing that  eternal  gun  about  with  him,  or  to  see  him  with- 
out it;  though  it  would  have  been  but  little  protec- 
tion against  so  many  !  Perhaps  it's  all  for  the  best.  If 
he  had  fired,  and  killed  one  of  them,  it  might  have  ex- 
asperated them,  and  they  might  have  done  worse.  Well, 
we  were  assembled  round  the  fire,  as  I  said,  and  my 
husband  was  particularly  cheerful ;  he  was  sitting  in  the 
corner  close  to  the  window,  with  his  gun  leaning  against 
the  wall  close  to  his  hand,  when  he  got  up  to  close  the 
shutter  on  the  other  side,  as  the  wind  was  chilly. 

It  seems  that  we  had  been  watched  all  the  evening, 
and  I  suspect  one  of  our  men  (we  have  only  one  man 
besides  the  shepherd)  was  a  spy  on  us,  for  my  husband 

(137) 


138     Attack  of  the  Bush-rangers. 

had  left  the  corner  where  his  gun  was,  only  for  a  mo- 
ment, when  a  man  in  a  kangaroo  jacket  rushed  into 
the  room,  and  got  between  my  husband  and  his  weapon, 
which  he  seized  hold  of,  and  pointing  his  own  gun  at 
my  husband,  commanded  bim  to  throw  up  his  hands 
over  his  head,  or  he  would  fire. 

We  were  all  in  a  cluster  together,  and  my  husband 
fearing,  I  dare  say,  that  we  might  be  wounded  or  killed, 
held  up  his  arms.  On  this  the  bush-ranger  threw  his 
gun  over  his  arm ;  but  my  husband  in  an  instant  rushed 
at  him,  and  clasped  him  round  the  body.  In  the  strug- 
gle, the  bush-ranger's  gun  went  off.  But  iu  the  mean- 
time more  bush-ranger's  had  come ;  two  of  them  imme- 
diately seized  my  husband  from  behind,  and  the  first 
struck  him  over  the  head  with  the  end  of  his  gun,  which 
I  think  stunned  him  for  a  time.  They  then  bound  him 
tightly  hand  to  foot,  and  at  the  same  time  two  of  them 
held  me  and  bound  me  also,  and  another  man  took  hold 
of  the  children.  Looking  round,  I  missed  Lucy,  and 
guessed  that  she  had  escaped  from  the  back  window  of 
her  little  bedroom.  God  help  her!  I  hardly  know 
whether  to  wish  she  may  be  restored  to  life  and  con- 
sciousness or  not.     But  Grod's  will  be  done ! 

Well,  gentlemen,  when  they  had  bound  my  husband, 
they  asked  him  where  he  had  put  his  money ;  for  being 
new  settlers,  we  had  been  so  imprudent  as  to  bring  nearly 
a  thousand  dollars  with  us,  besides  a  little  plate,  and  our 
watches,  and  other  articles  of  value,  of  which  no  doubt 
the  bush-rangers  had  information.  My  poor  husband 
was  scarcely  recovered  from  the  stunning  blow  of  the 
bush-ranger's  gun,  but  he  declared  that  we  had  no  money ; 
that  we  were  poor  settlers,  and  had  nothing  with  us  but 
a  few  necessaries,  such  as  flour  and  tea  and  sugar. 


My  Husband's  Life  Threatened    139 

The  man  who  had  first  pointed  his  gun  at  him,  now 
placed  it  close  to  his  head,  and  swore  most  horribly  that 
if  he  did  not  instantly  tell  him  where  the  money  was  hid, 
he  would  blow  out  his  brains.  This  man  seemed  to  bo 
the  leader. 

"  Money,"  said  he,  ''  we  will  have;  we  know  you  have 
got  it,  so  tell  us  where  it  is,  or" — and  here  he  swore  a 
dreadful  oath — "  you  shall  have  the  contents  of  this  bar- 
rel through  your  brains." 

I  was  held  by  two  men,  who  had  tied  a  handker- 
chief over  my  mouth,  and  it  was  in  vain  that  I  struggled 
to  get  loose.  The  bush-ranger  put  his  finger  on  the  lock 
of  his  gun,  and  I  heard  a  click ;  I  knew  well  what  the 
click  meant.  In  another  instant  I  expected  to  behold 
my  poor  husband's  head  shattered  to  pieces.  With  a 
desperate  strength,  which  nothing  but  despair  could  have 
lent  to  me,  I  loosened  one  arm,  and  tearing  the  handker- 
chief from  my  mouth,  I  exclaimed,  "  Oh !  tell  them,  tell 
them !  For  God's  sake  tell  them  ! — life  is  better  than 
money  ..." 

"Oh — ho  !"  said  the  leader,  "so  there  is  money,  after 
all.  Then  I  thiuk  I'll  find  a  way  to  get  it.  Here,"  he 
said  to  one  of  the  men,  "  put  your  musket  close  to  this 
gentleman's  head ;  that's  right — now  cock  it — now  put 
your  finger  on  the  trigger,  and  if  he  offers  to  cry  out — 
fire !  And  now  for  the  lady.  Just  put  the  handker- 
chief over  her  mouth  again,  and  this  time  take  care  she 
doesn't  get  it  off  again;  a  woman  can't  hold  her  tongue, 
though  her  husband's  brains  may  be  blown  out  from  her 
talking.  In  the  meantime,  ma'am,"  said  he,  with  a  sort 
of  mock  politeness,  "  I'll  trouble  you  to  walk  into  the 
inner  room.     I  should  not  like  to  shock  a  lady's  nerves, 


140  They  Find  the  Money. 

nor  a  gentleman's  neitlier,  with  what  is  usual  in  these 
cases." 

''  I  will  not  move,"  said  I,  horrified  at  his  words.  "  I 
will  not  move ;  I  will  not  leave  my  husband  and  my 
children.     Kill  me,  if  you  will,  but  here  I  will  stay." 

''By  no  means,"  said  the  mocking  bush-ranger 5  "we 
never  wish  to  kill  anybody  if  we  can  help  it,  that's  not 
our  game;  but  if  you  will  not  walk,  you  must  be  carried." 

The  two  men  who  held  me  then  lifted  me  up  in  an 
instant,  and  carried  me  into  the  bedroom,  where  they 
threw  me  on  the  bed. 

"  Now,"  said  the  leader,  "  is  the  lady  put  comfortably 
to  bed?" 

''Ay,  ay,"  said  the  man  who  held  me  down;  ''we've 
got  her  tight  enough." 

"  You  see,"  he  said  to  my  husband,  for  I  could  hear 
him  speak  plainly,  as  the  two  rooms  are  separated  only 
by  the  log  partition,  "you  see  how  things  are;  you  had 
better  tell  at  once,  before  we  proceed  to  further  extremi- 
ties." 

Extreme  terror  and  faintness  had  kept  me  silent  till 
this  moment,  but  now  fear  for  my  husband  and  my  chil- 
dren, as  well  as  the  horror  of  my  own  condition,  over- 
came all  other  feelings,  and  I  cried  out,  "  I'll  tell !  I'll 
tell !  Don't  fire !  Take  up  the  stone  before  the  hearth — • 
the  money  is  there." 

The  leader  immediately  desired  some  one  outside  to 
bring  a  strong  stake  to  lift  up  the  stone,  telling  him  to 
be  quick,  for  they  had  no  time  to  lose,  as  they  had  far  to 
travel  before  morning.  Then  I  heard  them  remove  the 
stone,  and  the  dollars  chinked  as  the  man  pulled  out  the 
has.   and  threw   it  on   the  floor.     The   sight  of  the 


Discover  My  Daughter's  Escape.  141 

heavy  bag  and  the  sound  of  the  money,  I  fancy,  put 
the  party  in  good  humour,  for  the  men  who  held  me 
relaxed  their  hold,  and  one  left,  telling  the  other  not  to 
lose  sight  of  me. 

Presently  1  heard  the  leader  say — 
"Where's  the  young  girl?" 
No  one  seemed  to  know. 

"  By ,"  said  he,  the  young  hussy  has  escaped,  and 

she  will  give  the  alarm.  Be  quick,  my  men,  quick — 
quick ;  leave  nothing  behind  that  you  can  carry  away — 
blankets,  sheets,  clothes — everything.  We  shall  want 
them  when  we  get  to  the  lake.  It's  a  pity,  though,  that 
the  girl  has  escaped.  She  will  set  her  father  fi-ee,  and 
that  may  be  awkward  for  us.  Stay  ;  we'll  take  him  with 
us,  and  then  he  can't  give  any  information  about  us." 
"  To  shoot  him  is  the  shortest  way,"  said  one. 
"Hang  him,"  said  another.  "Chuck  him  into  the 
river,  and  there  he'll  be  snug  till  somebody  finds  him." 

"  Don't  stand  talking  about  it,"  said  a  third;  "  shoot- 
ing him  would  give  the  alarm,  and  throwing  him  into  the 
river  is  unnecessary  trouble.  Just  lend  me  a  bit  of  cord, 
or  a  silk  handkerchief,  and  I'll  warrant  he'll  be  quiet 
enough  after." 

I  conjectured  he  was  about  to  strangle  my  helpless 
husband,  for  I  heard  the  leader  say — 

"  Stop ! — no  murder,  if  we  can  help  it.  We  can  do 
that  with  him  at  any  time,  if  his  living  is  likely  to  harm 
us.  For  the  present  we  will  take  him  with  us.  Loose 
his  legs  and  bind  his  arms  behind  his  back.  And  now 
let  us  be  off.     But  first  let  us  make  the  lady  safe." 

I  was  taken  accordingly  into  the  sitting-room ;  and  then 
they  bound  me  fast,  and  left  mc  as  you  found  me.     My 


142       The  Bush-Ran  qers  Leave. 

husband  liad  been  silent  all  this  time,  with  the  object,  no 
doubt,  which  he  carried  into  effect  when  he  was  removed 
outside  the  hut.  When  he  found  himself  on  the  outside, 
where  his  voice  could  be  heard,  he  immediately  set  up  a 
loud  shout  for  help,  that  made  the  woods  ring ;  he  was 
answered  by  screams  near  the  river,  which  procefided,  I 
do  not  doubt,  from  Lucy.  My  husband's  cries  were  in- 
stantly silenced. 

"  Grag  him !"  cried  out  a  voice. 

"  Let  us  knock  that  young  vixen  on  the  head  before 
we  go,"  said  another  voice;  ''she  will  rouse  the  neigh- 
bourhood, and  our  plan  will  be  defeated." 

"  It's  too  late,"  said  the  leader ;  "  the  alarm  is  given 
already.  It  would  do  us  no  good  to. put  the  girl  out  of 
the  way  now;  we  should  only  lose  time;  we  must  be 
quick,  and  place  a  good  distance  between  us,  before  we 
can  be  pursued.  We  shall  gain  a  march,  for  we  cannot 
be  tracked  till  daylight ;  but  we  can  travel  all  night,  and 
so  get  well  ahead." 

With  that  they  left  me,  threatening  me  and  my  chil- 
dren with  instant  death  if  I  uttered  the  least  sound  of 
alarm.  I  think  I  must  have  fainted ;  for  I  remember 
nothing  more,  till  I  was  aroused  by  the  door  of  the  hut 
being  burst  open,  which  the  bush-rangers,  I  suppose,  be- 
fore they  left,  had  fastened  on  the  outside. 

"  How  many  in  number,"  said  I,  ''do  you  think  they 
were  ?" 

"  I  cannot  tell ;  I  think  there  must  have  been  eight 
or  ten  at  one  time  in  the  hut ;  at  the  same  time  I  heard 
the  voices  of  some  outside.  All  those  whom  I  saw  were 
armed  with  a  gun  of  some  sort.     They  were  very  wild- 


Plan   next   day's  Expedition.     143 

looking ;  tlie  leader  had  on  a  kangaroo-skin  jacket,  and 
he  did  not  look  very  ferocious,  but  he  was  very  deter- 
mined." 

"  It  was  your  husband's  and  your  daughter's  cries," 
said  I,  "  that  we  heard  on  the  other  side  of  the  river, 
aud  it  is  plain,  from  your  story,  that  your  daughter 
endeavoured  to  cross  the  river  for  help,  but  was  terrified 
by  the  roar  of  the  waters  and  the  difficulty  of  the  pas- 
sage, and  that,  overcome  with  exhaustion,  she  fell  into 
the  fit  on  the  trunk  of  the  tree  in  which  we  found  her. 
Let  that  fortunate  escape,"  added  I,  "  inspire  you  with 
a  hope  that  we  may  be  successful  in  finding  your  hus- 
band uninjured." 

The  lady  then  returned  to  her  daughter ;  and  our 
companions,  who  had  gone  on  their  several  missions, 
having  returned,  we  passed  the  remainder  of  the  night 
by  the  fire,  planning  our  next  day's  expedition,  and 
giving  and  receiving  mutual  information  on  the  best 
course  to  be  pursued,  and  the  likeliest  track  of  the  bush- 
rangers. 

The  day  had  just  begun  to  break,  when  we  were 
cheered  by  the  appearance  of  the  young  magistrate  on 
horseback,  with  a  servant  and  two  friends  also  mounted, 
and  two  constables  on  foot.  They  were  all  well  armed ; 
and  when  he  had  communicated  to  us  the  intelligence 
which  he  had  received  iu  the  night  of  the  numbers  and 
desperation  of  the  bush-rangers,  we  were  not  a  little 
glad  to  be  joined  by  such  an  efficient  reinforcement. 
The  magistrate  immediately  took  on  himself  the  con- 
duct of  the  expedition ;  and  his  activity  and  determina- 
tion were  so  well  known,  that  all  the  party  were  happy 
to  place  themselves  under  his  direction. 


144     We  Discover  their  Track. 

The  plundered  family  having  been  first  removed  with 
the  greatest  care  to  my  house,  the  poor  young  lady 
showing  no  other  sign  of  life  than  a  low  breathing,  we 
lost  no  time  in  putting  ourselves  in  order.  The  magis- 
trate divided  our  body  into  two  parties,  entrusting  the 
command  of  one  party  to  me,  and  the  other  to  young 
Beresford.  As  the  four  horses  brought  by  our  last 
reinforcement  were  sufficient  for  the  purposes  of  scouts, 
the  remainder  of  the  party  proceeded  on  foot,  so  that 
each  of  our  parties,  Beresford  and  mine,  consisted  of 
seven,  including  ourselves.  With  these  preliminary 
dispositions  we  set  about  searching  for  the  track  of  the 
bush-rangers,  extending  ourselves  in  a  line,  the  better  to 
cover  the  ground.  The  track  was  soon  found,  as  the 
lai'ge  body  of  the  bush-rangers,  laden  with  their  booty, 
could  not  conceal  the  marks  of  their  passage. 

''  Stick  to  the  track,"  said  our  leader  to  the  constable 
who  acted  as  guide,  "and  let  nothing  distract  you  from 
it.  Gentlemen,"  said  he,  addressing  us,  "  I  shall  leave 
on  the  track  all  those  on  foot,  who  I  trust  will  be  ready 
for  action.  I  and  one  of  my  friends  will  gallop  on  for 
some  distance  towards  the  tall  tree  on  the  high  hill 
yonder,  and  try  the  chance  of  coming  up  with  the 
rascals.  Two  of  the  horsemen  will  scour  the  country 
on  your  flanks.  We  are  only  eighteen  in  number,  and 
the  bush-rangers  are  reported  tp  have  more  than  thirty 
among  them.  But  we  are  in  a  better  state  of  efficiency 
than  they  can  be.  Take  care  not  to  throw  away  your 
fire.  Now,  we  will  go  and  clear  the  way  for  you." 
Saying  this,  he  galloped  oil'  in  the  direction  to  which 
the  track  of  the  bush-rangers  seemed  to  lead  us. 

We  continued  our  course  warily  but  rapidly  for  about 


Start  IN   Pur  suit.  145 

ten  miles,  when  we  found  the  ma<.nstr:ite  anJ  liis  three 
couipunious  waiting  for  us  at  the  spot  where  two  tracks 
were  distinctly  visible.  Vie  had  scarcely  exchanged  a 
few  words,  when  the  horseman  to  our  left  galloped  into 
view,  and  made  silent  but  expressive  signs  fur  us  to 
come  to  hhn.  lie  motioned  us  to  be  cautious,  and  to 
look  about  us.  I  beckoned  to  the  horseman  on  our  right 
to  join  us,  and,  leaving  him  as  a  sentinel  to  mark  the 
point  of  the  track  from  which  we  had  been  called  off, 
we  moved  quickly  to  our  left,  and  soon  reached  the  spot 
to  which  the  horseman  had  called.  Here  our  eyes  were 
suddenly  arrested  by  a  spectacle  which  caused  us  all  in- 
stinctively to  throw  forward  our  arms,  and  gaze  anx- 
iously around  us.  The  sight  chilled  our  very  blood,  and 
was  sufficient  to  strike  the  boldest  among  us  with  con- 
sternation and  horror. 
10 


CjiaptBr  '^jjirttButji. 


The  ruins  of  the  burnt  Stock-keeper's  hut — The  murderer  Musquito 
and  the  Natives — The  sagacity  of  the  Kangaroo  dogs — Native's 
tomb — The  Natives  bejrin  an  attack — Skirmish  with  the  Bush- 


Amidst  the  ruins  of  a  stock-keeper's  hut,  recently 
burned  down,  we  beheld  a  form  which  we  recognized  as 
human  only  from  the  outline  of  the  body.  One  arm 
was  totally  consumed;  the  other  was  shrivelled  up. 
The  body  was  literally  roasted  and  charred.  It  was  in 
vain,  after  we  had  recovered  the  first  emotions  which  the 
horrid  sight  created,  that  we  endeavoured  to  trace  the 
features  of  the  disfigured  head ;  it  was  a  shapeless  mass 
of  calcined  bone.  The  clothes,  which  might  have  served 
to  identify  it,  were,  of  course,  utterly  consumed. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  in  making  this  examina- 
tion we  were  neglectful  of  our  own  safety.  Our  active 
magistrate  immediately  despatched  the  two  unemployed 
horsemen,  to  make  circuits  of  discovery  round  the  place, 
and  while  he,  with  one  of  the  constables,  made  a  close 
investigation  of  the  ruins,  the  remainder  of  our  little 
party  stood  in  order  with  our  arms  prepared  in  readiness 
to  meet  any  attack.  Our  first  impression  was,  that  the 
hut  had  been  visited  by  the  bush-rangers,  who  either  iu 
malice  or  revenge,  had  set  fire  to  the  hut,  and  burned  to 
death  the  unfortunate  occupant.  I3ut  the  truth  was  pre- 
(14G) 


A  S I  c  K  E  N I N  a   Sight.  147 

scutly  made  manifest  by  one  of  the  horsemen,  v>\\o 
hailed  us  from  a  little  distance,  to  join  him. 

We  proceeded  towards  the  spot  where  he  was  standing, 
and  we  presently  came  on  two  dead  bodies,  evidently 
stock-keepers  from  their  clothes  and  appearance.  They 
were  quite  dead  and  cold.  Their  wounds  at  once  in- 
formed us  that  they  had  been  killed  by  the  natives. 
On  laying  bare  their  clothes,  we  found  their  bodies 
pierced  with  innumerable  small  holes  caused  by  the  long, 
thin  spears  used  by  the  natives  in  their  encounters. 
Their  heads  were  battered  to  a  jelly-like  mass,  from  the 
frequent  blows  of  the  waddies,  a  small  and  light  club  of 
hard  wood,  which  forms  the  weapon  of  the  natives  of 
Australia,  in  close  combat. 

The  sickening  sight  of  these  two  bodies,  coupled  with 
the  horrid  form  amidst  the  ruins  of  the  hut,  told  plainly 
what  had  happened.  The  stock-keepers  had  been  at- 
tacked by  the  natives,  who  had,  no  doubt,  intercepted 
the  two  unfortunate  men  before  us,  and  had  killed  them 
after  a  hard  tight,  as  the  number  of  their  wounds  testi- 
fied. The  third  stock-keeper,  it  seemed,  had  been  able 
to  gain  the  hut,  in  which,  perhaps,  he  had  defended 
himself  for  some  time  against  the  natives;  and  the  black 
people  had  set  fire  to  the  thatch  of  native  grass,  and  so 
consumed  it  and  him.  We  searched  again,  and  more 
narrowly  amongst  the  charcoal  ruins,  and  found  the 
barrel  of  a  musket  partially  melted  by  the  fire,  with  the 
lock  nearly  whole,  and  the  piece  of  brass  belonging  to 
the  butt  of  the  piece.  This  was  confirmation  of  our 
surmise.  The  stock-keeper  in  the  hut  had  vcr}-  likely 
wounded  or  killed  one  or  more  of  the  natives,  and  they, 
rendered  more  savage  by  their  wounds,  had  burnt  hiui 
alive  I 


1 18         MUSQUITO    AND    THE   NATIVES. 

At  this  time  a  native  of  Australia,  by  name  Musquito, 
a  tall  and  powerful  man,  had  been  committing  many  atro- 
cities in  Van  Diemen's  Land.  He  had  been  sent  from 
Sydney  some  years  before  for  an  offence,  I  think  it  was 
murder,  that  he  had  committed,  by  Grovernor  Macquarie, 
a  proceeding  complained  of  at  the  time,  but  gradually 
forgotten,  as  Musquito,  until  within  the  last  year  or  so, 
had  conducted  himself  well,  and  had  proved  himself 
useful  on  several  occasions,  by  tracking  runaway  con- 
victs, and  lost  or  stolen  sheep.  It  was  known  that  he 
was  at  the  head  of  a  mob  of  natives,  consisting  of  about 
thirty ;  but  we  had  no  idea  that  he  was  in  this  part  of 
the  island ;  however,  this  looked  very  like  some  of  his 
work,  and  we  were  not  a  little  troubled  at  the  prospect 
of  having  to  contend  against  the  treacherous  natives  as 
well  as  with  the  fierce  and  desperate  bush-rangers.  This 
was  an  addition  to  our  difficulties  and  our  danger  on 
which  we  had  not  calculated,  and  the  magistrate  called 
a  council  of  war  to  deliberate  on  the  best  mode  of  pro- 
ceeding. 

We  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  of  this  halt  to 
refresh  ourselves,  as  we  anticipated  hard  work.  On  the 
hearth  of  the  demolished  hut  we  found  a  tripod,  such  as 
was  in  common  use  then,  and  now  too  for  boiling  things 
in,  holding  three  or  four  gallons.  One  of  the  constables 
cleaned  it  out  to  make  tea  in.  There  were  many  of  the 
shrubs  known  by  the  name  of  the  tea-tree  growing  near, 
and  as  we  wished  to  husband  our  stock,  we  made  tea  of 
some  of  the  leaves,  which  make  a  very  good  substitute 
for  the  China  tea.  The  leaf  resembles  the  leaf  of  the 
privet,  which  is  common  in  the  hedges  in  some  parts  of 
England.     In  the  meanwhile  some  of  our  party  buried 


Sagacity  of  the  Kangaroo  Dogs    149 

the  two  dead  stock-keepers,  after  having  first  examined 
their  clothes  narrowly,  to  see  if  we  could  find  any  paper 
or  marks  by  which  they  could  be  identified.  On  cue 
"we  found  a  tin  tobacco-box,  which  was  given  in  charge 
to  one  of  the  constables,  and  on  the  other  was  his  pass, 
from  which  we  ascertained  his  name,  and  also  that  ho 
had  recently  arrived  from  Hobart  Town. 

All  this  time  we  took  care  to  guard  against  surprise, 
for  we  did  not  know  who  might  be  watching  us,  but  we 
felt  no  fear  from  an  open  attack  of  any  body  of  natives 
that  could  be  collected  against  us;  but  if  by  chance 
Musquito  and  his  mob  of  natives  should  join  with  the 
bush-rangers,  we  felt  that  such  a  body  of  sixty  or  more 
persons,  with  the  bush-rangers  well  armed  and  despe- 
rate, might  be  more  than  we  could  cope  with.  These 
considerations  troubled  us  all  not  a  little,  and  we  made 
haste  to  despatch  our  meal,  keeping  a  strict  lookout  the 
while. 

Our  banquet  was  not  a  very  merry  one,  I  must  say ; 
we  all  had  very  long  faces,  with  some  slight  misgivings 
of  the  prudence  of  our  expedition ;  not  that  there  was 
any  want  of  courage  among  us,  or  of  the  spirit  of  enter- 
prize  ;  we  were  bold  and  cool  enough ;  but  some  of  us 
had  left  wives  and  families  behind,  and  we  felt  that  we 
were  fighting  against  odds;  that  we  were  risking  our 
own  lives,  which  were  precious,  against  the  lives  of 
rascals  which  were  worthless. 

These  thoughts,  with  the  burial  of  the  dead  and  dis- 
figured men,  and  the  sight  of  the  other  man  burnt  into 
charcoal,  cast  a  gloom  over  us  which  was  painful  and 
dispiriting.  Our  kangaroo  dogs  went  smelling  about 
with  their  tails  down,  and  crouching  with  that  expres- 


150    Hector  Scents  the  Natives. 

sion  of  fear  wliich  these  hounds  display  -when  they  aa'e 
in  the  vicinity  of  an  unusual  object,  and  especially  when 
they  see  or  smell  a  native.  One  of  them  poked  about 
the  ruins,  and  startled  us  with  a  howl  so  dismal  that  it 
almost  chilled  us  with  a  sort  of  superstitious  fear. 

"  Young  Hector  is  uneasy,"  said  one. 

"  He  knows  there's  something  wrong,"  said  another; 
''  and  he  can't  make  out  what  that  charcoal  body  means. 
I  don't  think  he  has  much  spirit  in  him  just  now  to  pull 
a  kangaroo." 

Hector,  however,  suddenly  belied  this  surmise,  for, 
ascending  the  little  eminence  above  the  ruins,  he  assumed 
an  attitude  of  lively  and  fixed  attention.  His  head  be- 
came erect,  his  eyes  keenly  piercing  into  the  bush,  and 
his  body  ready  for  a  spring. 

"  Silence,"  said  I;  "  Hector  has  got  scent  of  something; 
I  know  his  ways  well.  See,  he  looks  at  me,  to  intimate 
that  there  is  something  in  the  wind.  Go  see,"  said  I; 
''  see,  Hector,  good  dog,  what  is  it  ?" 

The  intelligent  animal  immediately  set  off  into  the 
bush  stealthily,  and  without  barking  or  growling.  He 
was  soon  out  of  sight. 

"  It's  only  a  kangaroo,"  said  one  of  the  constables. 

''  It's  more  than  a  kangaroo,"  said  I ;  "  Hector  is 
almost  equal  to  his  old  sire,  who  could  do  everything 
but  speak,  and  indeed  I  think  he  could  have  talked,  if 
he  only  knew  how  to  begin  ;  but  I  understand  his  signs 
well.  Depend  upon  it,  there's  a  reason  for  what  he 
does." 

As  I  spoke  these  words,  we  observed  the  dog  canter- 
ing back  to  U3  at  a  swift  pace.  He  came  straight  up  to 
me,  and  whined  with  peculiar  signs  of  fear. 


He  Leads  Us  to  the  Attack.  151 

"  He  has  seen  a  native,"  said  I;  "  that  I'll  swear.  I 
can't  mistake  him.  We  had  better  be  prepared,  thougli 
I  can't  think  they  would  have  the  temerity  to  attack 
us." 

"  Let  us  go  and  face  the  danger,"  said  our  young 
leader ;  "  it  is  better  to  put  an  end  to  it  one  way  or  the 
other  »  as  to  retreating,  that  is  out  of  the  question." 

"  Oh,"  said  we  all, — "  no  retreat,  no  retreat !" 

"  Then  put  yourselves  in  order,  gentlemen,  and  let  us 
move  on." 

"Let  us  follow  the  dog,"  said  I,  ''and  go  warily 
about  it ;  these  natives  hide  behind  the  trees,  and  you 
can  hear  nothing  of  them  till  you  find  a  spear  sticking 
in  you.  Keep  the  other  dogs  back,  and  let  me  and 
Hector  go  first.    Now,  Hector,  good  dog;  where  is  it?" 

Hector  licked  my  hand,  as  if  to  say,  "  take  care  of 
yourself,"  and  trotted  on  before.  I  kept  immediately 
behind,  taking  care  not  to  over-run  him,  and  the  rest  of 
our  party  followed  quickly  after  us,  on  the  alert,  and 
with  their  arms  ready.  Hector  continued  at  his  trotting 
pace  for  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards,  when  he 
stopped,  and  assumed  the  attitude  of  a  dog  pointing  at 
game.  I  tried  to  pierce  into  the  bush  with  my  eyes, 
but  I  could  discover  nothing.  I  looked  back,  and  saw 
my  party  behind,  all  ready  for  action. 

"  Go  see !"  I  said  to  the  dog. 

The  dog  hung  down  his  tail,  sniffed,  whined,  and 
standing  up,  pawed  me  with  his  fore-legs. 

I  patted  him. 

"What  is  it.  Hector?" 

But  some  terror  hung  over  the  hound,  and  he  was  re- 
luctant to  move  forward ;  but  he  looked  towards  a  parti- 


152     A   Dead  Native  Discovered. 

cular  part  of  the  bush,  and  uttered  the  low  whine  expres- 
sive of  unusual  fear." 

The  magistrate  now,  leaving  the  others  behind,  joined 
me. 

''What  is  the  matter  with  the  dog?"  said  he. 

"  I  can't  tell,"  said  I ;  '^  but  there  is  some  reason  for  all 
this;  I'm  sure  there  are  natives  about  by  his  manner; 
if  they  were  bush-rangers  he  would  bark  or  growl." 

"We  must  put  an  end  to  this  suspense,"  said  the  ma- 
gistrate ;  "  observe  him  now,  he  is  looking  intensely  at 
some  object  not  far  off.  Stand  here,  and  hold  my  horse, 
and  I  will  go  on  the  line  the  dog  points  to." 

He  immediately  advanced  on  foot,  having  first  observed 
the  bearing  of  an  object  behind  me,  in  order  that  he 
might  keep  in  a  line  straight  to  the  point  to  which  the 
dog's  eye  was  directed.  In  the  meantime  the  party  be- 
hind came  up  to  where  I  stood,  and  we  all  held  ourselves 
ready  for  an  alarm.  The  magistrate  had  not  advanced 
far  before  he  stopped,  and  looking  cautiously  around  him, 
holding  his  fowling-piece  in  a  position  to  fire,  and  with- 
out turning  his  head,  beckoned  with  his  arm  for  us  to 
advance. 

We  came  up  to  him,  and  he  silently  pointed  to  a  hollow 
and  blackened  trunk  of  a  tree,  the  branches  of  which 
were  still  standing,  and  covered  with  the  late  autumn 
leaf.  Within  the  trunk  we  saw  standing  up  a  native, 
with  his  face  turned  towards  us.  The  blackness  of  his 
colour  assimilating  with  the  charcoal  of  the  burned  tree 
prevented  the  body  from  being  distinguished  from  the 
blackened  trunk,  until  we  got  close  to  it,  but  the  acute- 
ness  of  the  hound's  organs  had  enabled  him  to  detect  this 
object  at  a  considerable  distance.     The  sight  of  this  na- 


A    N  A  T  I  V  E '  S    T  0  M  B  .  153 

tivc  lurking  within  the  body  of  the  tree  instantly  filled 
us  with  the  fear  that  there  were  more  close  at  hand,  an<l 
we  expected  every  moment  to  receive  a  volley  of  sptiars 
from  the  hidden  enemy;  but  none  appeared,  and  all  was 
silence;  the  dogs,  however,  showed  symptoms  of  unea- 
siness, which  made  us  look  about  us. 

"Shall  I  fire?"  said  one  of  the  constables;  "it's  a 
sure  shot." 

"  Stop,"  said  the  magistrate ;  "  let  us  try  to  take  him 
alive;  we  have  got  him  safe;  he  can't  get  through  the 
back  of  the  tree,  and  we  hem  him  in  at  the  front.  But 
it's  odd  that  he  doesn't  move." 

We  were  about  thirty  yards  from  the  tree,  but  as  the 
native  was  within  the  trunk,  we  could  not  discern  in  the 
obscurity  more  than  his  dusky  body ;  the  trees  were  very 
thick  all  round,  forming  a  dense  mass  of  trunks  as  close 
as  they  could  grow.  It  was  a  favourable  place  for  the 
natives  to  tight  in,  and  they  are  so  active,  and  so  clever 
in  hiding  themselves,  that  you  may  be  in  the  midst  of 
hundreds  in  such  a  place  without  being  able  to  catch  a 
sight  of  one  of  thcni. 

"I'll  put  an  end  to  this,"  said  the  magistrate;  "be 
ready,  my  friends,  and  don't  let  him  escape." 

Saying  this,  he  ran  towards  him  with  his  fowling-piece 
pointed  towards  the  tree. 

"  Why,  he's  dead  !  and  we  have  come  upon  a  native's 
grave ;  I  have  heard  of  them,  but  never  saw  one  before. 
This  is  one  of  the  black  fellows  that  the  stock-keeper  shot, 
no  doubt,  before  he  was  burnt  to  death  in  the  hut." 

On  examining  the  body,  we  found  the  mark  of  tho 
musket-ball  that  had  gone  through  his  heart  and  passed 
out  at  his  back.     He  was  most  likely  close  to  the  hut 


154     Natives  Begin  the   Attack. 

when  lie  was  shot,  and  must  have  been  killed  instantane- 
ously. 

We  were  clustering  round  the  tree,  gazing  at  this  sight, 
and  a  little  off  our  guard,  when  a  whirr  was  heard  among 
us,  and  a  long  thin  spear  passing  through  the  group  of 
heads  without  wounding  any  one,  stuck  in  the  bark  of 
the  tree.  We  were  quickly  roused  by  this  compliment, 
and  we  turned  about,  looking  round  on  all  sides  j  but  we 
could  see  nothing.  Presently  we  heard  the  tramp  of  a 
horse's  feet,  and  a  crashing  through  the  bushes,  and  the 
horseman  whom  we  had  left  as  a  sentinel  came  into  view. 
A  spear  was  sticking  in  his  back,  and  two  pieces  of  bro- 
ken spears  were  sticking  in  the  sides  of  the  horse,  which 
seemed  maddened  with  fright  and  pain.  It  was  with  diffi- 
culty that  the  rider  could  direct  his  horse  towards  us,  the 
animal  being  almost  unmanageable. 

"  Look  out !"  he  cried ;  ''  the  natives  are  on  us — I  have 
not  seen  them;  but  they  have  marked  me  and  my  horse. 
Depend  upon  it  they  are  joined  by  the  bush-rangers,  or 
they  would  not  think  of  attacking  an  armed  man  on  horse- 
back. Musquito  is  with  them  you  may  be  sure,  and  he 
has  taujijht  them  that  the  danger  is  over  when  a  fire-arm 
is  discharged ;  I  dropped  mine  when  this  spear  struck  me. 
It  came  on  me  unawares;  and,  in  catching  at  the  bridle 
when  the  horse  started,  I  dropped  my  piece.  I  am  not 
much  hui't;  but  this  spear  makes  me  smart  a  bit." 

"  Oh  never  mind  a  spear  wound,"  said  our  young 
magistrate;  "  we  have  got  a  surgeon  among  us,  so  we  are 
all  right." 

While  these  words  were  passing,  we  had  secured  the 
horse,  and  our  friend  dismounted.  The  spear  had  pene- 
trated the  flesli  under  his  right  ;irm,  and  the  point  was 


1> E I  N  ci    Speared   no   Joke.  135 

Btieking  out  of  the  wound  three  or  four  inches  on  the 
other  side.  It  was  a  small  spear,  about  ten  feet  long. 
The  end  hud  been  sharpened  and  hardened  in  the  fire,  by 
scorching  it,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  natives,  and 
it  formed  an  ugly  weapon  to  be  lodged  in  a  gentleman's 
person.  The  two  constables  quickly  drew  out  the  pieces 
of  broken  spear  from  the  horse's  side  ;  they  fuund  more 
than  a  dozen  spear-holes  in  the  horse's  body,  which  bled 
freely,  but  none  of  them  seemed  to  be  deep,  except  two. 
All  this  passed  in  less  than  half  a  minute;  and  we  were 
all  the  time  looking  out  for  an  attack,  but  could  not 
guess  from  which  quarter  it  would  come.  We  stood  in 
this  way  for  several  minutes,  straining  our  eyes  to  dis- 
cover our  enemies,  but  in  vain.  Suddenly  our  young 
leader,  who  was  sitting  on  horseback,  cried  out — 
"  Holloa,  they're  at  me  !" 

We  turned  and  looked.  A  spear  had  gone  through  his 
hat  sideways,  and  knocked  it  ofi";  but  we  could  see  no 
one. 

"  That  was  a  good  shot,"  said  one  of  us.  "  Perhaps 
the  next  may  be  better — look  out  I" 

A  shower  of  spears  fell  among  us  from  the  same  quar- 
ter, hitting  one  of  the  constables,  and  wounding  another. 
As  the  distance,  however,  was  great,  they  did  little  more 
than  penetrate  the  skin,  and  a  laugh  was  raised  at  the 
expense  of  the  sufferers.  The  parties  speared,  however, 
did  not  appear  to  enjoy  the  joke  at  all. 

"  It's  of  no  use,"  said  one  of  them,  ''to  stand  here  to 
serve  as  targets  for  these  black  rascals ;  let  us  make  a  rush 
into  the  bush,  and  come  to  close  quarters." 

"They  will  not  let  you,"  said  our  leader;  ''you  have 
no  chance  against  them  that  way;  but  we  must  do  some- 


156     BUSH-KANGERS   JoiN   THE    NATIVES. 

thing.  We  must  try  to  drive  them  tlirough  this  belt  of 
wood,  and  get  them  into  the  plain  beyond,  where  we 
shall  be  able  to  see  what  we  are  about.  But  we  must  be 
very  cool,  and  very  cautious.  Take  three  of  your  party," 
said  he  to  me,  '*to  the  left;  and  do  you,  Beresford,  take 
three  of  yours  to  the  right,  so  as  to  slant  the  black  ras- 
cals, and  drive  them  from  the  trees.  Take  care  to  keep 
us  in  sight,  and  don't  advance  too  far.  The  rest  must 
advance  steadily  straight  on ;  I  and  the  twa  on  horseback 
will  be  ready  to  give  assistance  to  either  party." 

We  lost  no  time  in  effecting  this  movement,  and  pro- 
ceeded at  a  brisk  pace  through  the  wood.  Beresford's 
party  had  the  first  shot : — the  natives  moved  round  to  the 
other  side  of  the  trees ;  then  we  had  a  shot  at  them ;  and 
in  front  was  our  main  body.  They  could  not  stand  this 
long ;  they  did  throw  some  spears  at  us,  but  they  fell 
harmless.  They  scampered  oif,  in  number  about  thirty 
or  forty,  as  near  as  we  could  guess,  and  we  after  them, 
till  they  came  to  the  edge  of  the  bank  bounding  the 
wood,  over  which  they  disappeared. 

We  were  hastening  after  them,  when  suddenly  thirty 
or  forty  armed  men  started  up  from  beneath  the  bank, 
and  fired  a  volley  on  us,  which  brought  us  to  a  stand- 
still. We  were  all  in  a  line,  separated,  but  not  far  from 
each  other,  the  chase  after  the  natives  having  caused  us 
to  break  our  ranks.  I  looked  down  our  line  when  the 
volley  was  fired,  and  it  was  witlr  the  most  painful  con- 
cern that  I  saw  my  young  friend  Beresford  drop  to  the 
ground. 

It  was  clear  that  the  natives  had  formed  a  junctiou 
with  the  bush-rangers,  and  our  little  party  now  stood  in 
their  presence,  with  fearful  odds  against  us,  and  with 


Fairly  in   for  it.  157 

three  of  us  disabled.  Thus  fairly  brought  into  action, 
we  had  nothing  to  trust  to  but  our  courage  and  disci- 
pline, and  the  moral  superiority  which  the  right  has 
over  the  wrong.  The  bu.sh-rangcrs,  after  their  first 
volley,  had  disappeared  under  the  bank.  Our  leader 
instantly  called  out,  '^Ptcserve  your  lire — close  together 
— now  follow  me." 


The  Bush-rangers  retreat — The  Magistrate's  party  pursue — A 
Bivouac — Traclis  of  the  Bush-rangers — Crossing  of  the  big  river 
— The  pursuit  grows  warm. 

We  immediately  turned  to  the  right  to  a  point  about 
fifty  yards  off,  where  there  was  a  clump  of  trees  which 
projected  from  the  main  mass  of  the  forest.  By  this 
mauceuvre  we  turned  the  position  of  the  bush-rangers, 
which  at  first  was  in  their  favour,  to  our  own  advantage, 
as  it  enabled  us  to  take  them  along  their  line,  so  that 
they  stood  in  one  another's  way ;  and  while  they  were 
unprotected  in  the  open  plain,  we  were  sheltered  by  the 
trunks  of  the  trees. 

As  I  followed  with  my  division  of  the  party,  I  passed 
poor  Beresford,  whom  I  had  seen  fall  at  the  first  volley 
of  the  bush-rangers.  liaising  him  up,  we  bore  him  to 
the  shelter  of  the  wood.  Our  present  position  enabled 
us  now  to  see  the  movements  of  the  bush-rangers.  It 
was  not  their  game  to  fight,  only  to  disable  and  embar- 
rass the  pursuit;  we  were  not  surprised,  therefore, 
though  I  must  confess  I  felt  considerably  relieved,  to 
behold  the  bush-rangers  in  rapid  retreat  stealing  under 
the  bank. 

Perhaps  it  would  have   been  prudent  in  us,  seeing 

their  numbers  and  determination,  and  assisted  by  a 

harassing  body  of  natives,  to  have  let  them  alone,  and 

to  have  suffered   them  to  retire  without  molestation. 

(158) 


The  Busu -rangers  Retreat.  159 

But  our  blood  was  up,  and  as  I  have  often  obserred  on 
other  occasions,  there  seems  to  be  a  fighting  instinct  iu 
human  nature,  so  that  two  men,  or  two  bodies  of  men, 
when  they  have  got  opposite  each  other  with  the  in- 
tent of  lighting,  do  not  like  to  separate  without  exchang- 
ing blows. 

These  thoughts  occurred  afterwards,  for  I  was  as  hot 
as  any  of  us  at  the  time,  and  as  eager  to  continue  the 
pui-suit.  The  sight,  too,  of  our  neighbour  fired  us.  We 
saw  him  amidst  his  plunderers,  with  his  hands  tied  be- 
fore him,  and  goaded  on  by  two  or  three  of  them.  We 
were  all  going  helter-skelter  after  them,  when  we  were 
stopped  by  the  voice  of  our  young  leader,  who  was  the 
coolest  among  us. 

"  Stop,  gentlemen,"  said  he ;  "  we  must  not  go  too 
fast.  Remember  that  our  lives  are  precious,  and  it  is 
my  duty  not  to  allow  you  to  expose  yourselves  unneces- 
sarily. I  am  afraid  these  rascals  are  too  strong  for  us. 
You  may  observe  that  the  natives  seem  to  be  confident  iu 
their  numbers.  We  are  only  eighteen  in  number,  and 
our  enemies  are  at  least  sixty  or  seventy.  I  make  no 
doubt  that  a  party  of  soldiers  which  the  Government  has 
directed  to  the  Clyde,  will  follow  our  steps,  and  they  can 
easily  track  us  to  where  we  are.  My  advice  to  you  is  to 
wait  here  till  that  help  reaches  us ;  then  we  shall  be  a 
match  for  them." 

'No  waiting,"  cried  out  one  bold  young  fellow;  "let 
us  go  at  them  while  we  are  in  the  humour  for  it.  Those 
rascals  will  never  fight  when  it  comes  to  the  scratch ; 
let  us  make  a  rush  at  them,  and  put  an  end  to  it." 

"  If  you  will  allow  me  to  give  my  advice,"  said  I, 
"I  am  of  the  same  opinion  as  our  magistrate.     We 


160  We  Use  Stratagem. 

ought  to  endeavour  to  take  these  fellows  alive ;  it  would 
he  a  dear  victory  if  we  were  to  buy  it  at  the  expense  of 
many  of  our  own  lives." 

"  Oh  !  let  us  fight  it  out  now,"  cried  several;  "  why, 
these  bush-rangers  will  be  joined  by  more  convicts,  de- 
pend on  it,  as  they  go  on.  Let  us  crush  them  at  once, 
before  they  get  to  a  strength  too  much  for  us  to  put 
down." 

''  Well,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  if  you  are  determined 
to  go  on  with  this  job,  I  will  not  disappoint  you;  but 
we  must  use  a  little  stratagem  in  our  proceedings.  It  is 
now  four  o'clock ;  in  a  few  hours  it  will  be  dark,  when, 
you  know,  the  natives  will  not  stir,  for  they  are  afraid 
of  the  evil  spirit  which  they  believe  wanders  about  in 
the  night-time.  I  propose,  then,  that  we  should  remain 
where  we  are  for  two  hours,  so  as  to  make  the  bush- 
rangers think,  if  they  watch  us,  that  we  have  given  up 
the  pursuit.  Then  we  must  track  them  to  their  resting- 
place  for  the  night,  and  so  surprise  them  asleep  or  oif 
their  guard,  for  our  object  is  to  secure  them  alive,  and 
to  rescue  our  friend  from  their  hands,  with  as  little  risk 
as  possible  to  ourselves.     Are  you  agreed  ?" 

"  Agreed,"  said  we  all. 

"  Then  now  let  us  lose  no  time  in  attending  to  young 
Bcresford." 

We  were  all  glad  to  find,  on  examination,  that  Beres- 
ford  had  only  been  stunned  by  a  ball  which  had  grazed 
his  head  ;  there  was  not  much  bleeding  from  the  wound, 
but  as  the  blood  had  flowed  down  his  face,  which  was 
pale  as  death,  it  gave  him  a  ghastly  appearance.  In  less 
than  half  an  hour  he  was  sufficiently  recovered  to  sit  up, 
but  he  complained  of  headache,  and  weakness  of  the 
limbs. 


PEPARE  FOR  TnE  StRUOGLE.    161 

"Do  you  think  you  coukl  keep  up  with  us?"  said  our 
leader. 

"  I'll  try,"  said  he,  <*  and  at  any  rate  you  shall  not  be 
stopped  on  my  account.     I  would  rather  stay  behind." 

«  And  be  speared  by  the  natives,"  said  I,  ''which  you 
certainly  would  be.  No — no;  if  we  go  on,  you  must  go 
with  us,  if  we  have  to  carry  you,  for  our  party  is  too 
weak  to  be  divided." 

"  And  now,  gentlemen,  pray  make  the  best  use  of 
your  time.  Rest  yourselves ;  and  while  you  have  the 
opportunity,  put  your  arms  in  order,  and  I  recommend 
you  to  put  new  flints  in  your  hammers.  It  is  half  the 
battle  to  have  your  weapons  in  good  order.  We  shall 
have  the  advantage  of  the  bush-rangers  there,  for  their 
muskets  must  be  rusty,  and  out  of  order." 

We  set  ourselves  about  the  work  accordingly,  and  put 
our  arms  in  good  condition,  keeping  a  good  lookout  the 
while,  but  we  were  not  molested.  At  the  end  of  two 
hours,  one  of  the  horsemen  was  despatched  on  the  track 
of  the  enemy,  and  after  him  another  to  keep  the  first  in 
view,  and  to  communicate  with  the  main  body.  The 
third  wounded  horse  we  feared  would  be  of  little  use, 
so  he  was  turned  loose  in  the  bush,  and  his  saddle  and 
bridle  stowed  away  in  the  fork  of  a  tree,  and  covered 
over  with  bark  to  keep  it  dry.  His  rider's  wound  was 
a  little  stiffish,  but  he  said  he  should  be  all  right  if  it 
came  to  a  brush,  and  he  got  warmed  to  the  work. 

Our  party  was  divided  as  before.  I  had  the  direction 
of  six  men,  and  Beresford  of  six  more.  The  dismounted 
horseman  made  Beresford's  party  amount  to  seven.  Our 
leader,  who  w:i8  well  mounted,  made  excursions  of 
observation  on  either  side. 
11 


162  A  Disagreeable  Night. 

Ie  this  order  we  proceeded  on  the  track  of  the  bush- 
rangers till  the  dusk  of  the  evening,  when  we  made 
another  halt.  Planting  sentinels  around,  whom  we 
relieved  at  stated  times,  we  remained  in  this  position  till 
midnight.  We  then  resumed  our  march  in  Indian  file, 
calculating  that  we  should  reach  the  resting-place  of  the 
bush-raufrers  at  three  or  four  o'clock  in  the  morning;,  at 
which  time  the  slumber  of  sleepers  is  most  profound. 

But  we  found  that  we  had  overrated  our  powers  of 
tracking ;  we  had  not  proceeded  half  a  mile  before  we 
were  brought  to  a  stand-still ;  we  had  lost  the  track, 
and  in  the  obscurity  of  the  night  we  found  it  impossible 
to  recover  it.  "We  remained,  therefore,  where  we  were, 
afraid  to  light  a  fire,  lest  we  should  reveal  our  position. 
We  made  cautious  excursions  to  the  right  and  left, 
in  the  hope  of  discovering  our  enemies  from  the  light 
of  their  fire ;  but  we  could  see  nothing,  and  the  night 
passed  away  in  one  of  the  most  disagreeable  bivouacs  I 
ever  witnessed.  We  contrived  the  best  supper  that  we 
could  in  the  dark,  and  those  who  could  got  some  sleep. 

At  the  first  dawn  of  light  we  were  up  and  stirring, 
but  it  was  a  good  half-hour  before  we  could  recover  the 
lost  track.  The  morning  was  hazy  and  raw,  and  we  all 
felt  that  it  was  anything  but  a  pleasurable  expedition  that 
we  were  engaged  in.  1  have  often  admired  how  much 
difierence  a  good  night's  rest  and  a  good  supper  make 
on  the  capabilities  of  a  man  ;  it  is  in  vain  that  enthu- 
siasm lends  its  aid  to  support  us  in  arduous  under- 
takings ;  man,  after  all,  depends  much  on  his  physical 
condition,  and  the  old  proverb  of  an  English  soldier 
being  in  the  best  fighting  condition  after  a  good  dinner, 
I  have  had  frequent  opportunities  to  test  the  truth  of. 


We  Resume  the  Chase.  163 

On  we  went  with  very  long  faces,  and  very  blue  noses, 
for  about  three  miles,  when  we  came  to  a  brook  about 
twenty  feet  wide,  and  not  very  deep,  to  the  border  of 
which  our  track  led  The  walk,  or  rather  the  trot,  had 
warmed  us  up  a  bit,  and,  without  any  hesitation,  we  all 
dashed  into  it.  It  was  nearly  up  to  our  middle,  and  the 
stream  ran  very  strong,  but  we  crossed  it  merrily.  Pro- 
ceeding onwards,  the  track  led  us  to  the  summit  of 
a  green  hill,  at  which  point  it  appeared  the  bush- 
rangers had  taken  a  sudden  resolution,  for  the  track 
now  proceeded  at  a  right  angle  from  the  old  one,  aud, 
after  following  it  for  a  couple  of  miles,  we  found  our- 
selves on  the  bank  of  the  Shannon  llivcr. 

Here  we  were  a  little  at  fault,  for  the  stream  was  too 
deep  and  too  rapid  to  be  forded,  and  we  were  not  suffi- 
ciently ingenious  to  construct  an  extempore  canoe  from 
the. bark  of  a  tree,  as  the  natives  of  New  South  Wales 
are  accustomed  to  do.  On  the  other  side  of  the  river, 
which  was  about  sixty  yards  wide,  was  a  stock-keeper's 
hut,  which  looked  as  if  it  had  been  abandoned,  so  deso- 
late and  wretched  was  its  appearance.  . 

The  tracks  on  our  side  of  the  river  were  quite  fresh, 
and  it  was  evident  that  a  body  of  men  had  recently 
crossed  at  the  spot  where  we  stood.  Our  leader  des- 
patched the  two  constables  to  the  right  and  left  to  make 
discoveries  ]  but  they  returned,  after  the  lapse  of  an 
hour,  with  the  report  that  they  could  find  no  means  of 
crossing  the  river,  and  that  they  had  discovered  no  track. 

After  similar  explorations  on  all  sides,  we  were  com- 
pelled to  come  to  the  conclusion  that  they  had  crossed 
the  river  at  the  point  where  we  were  standing,  but  how 
they  had  done  it  was  the  puzzle.    There  was  no  sign  of 


164  Stopped  by  a  Kiver. 

any  living  creature  on  the  opposite  bank,  and  the  stock- 
hut,  from  its  roofless  condition,  and  the  general  aspect 
of  things  about  it,  seemed  to  have  been  long  since  aban- 
doned. It  was  in  vain  that  we  held  a  council  of  war ; 
no  one  could  help  us  out  of  our  difficulty;  there  was 
the  deep  river  between  us  and  our  enemy,  and  there  we 
might  stay  for  ever,  if  we  waited  till  it  had  done  flowing. 

"  Let  us  cross  the  river  higher  up,"  said  one,  ''till 
we  come  to  a  place  that  is  fordable." 

"  Lord  bless  you  !"  said  one  of  the  constables ;  "  you 
will  find  no  ford  on  the  Shannon.  It's  the  most  i-ara- 
bustious  river  in  the  whole  colony,  and  always  goes 
ramping  and  roaring  along  as  if  it  were  in  the  most  ter- 
rible hurry  in  the  world  to  get  over  the  ground.  It's 
quite  a  speck  to  cross  it  on  horseback,  unless  your  horse 
is  a  real  good  one,  and  in  the  dry  season.  But,  what 
do  I  see  there?  Look  !  Don't  you  see  a  little  sort  of 
a  punt  behind  those  sedges  ?  It  is  a  punt !  Depend 
upon  it,  the  bush-rangers  crossed  by  that  thing." 

We  all  gazed  anxiously;  and,  sure  enough,  there  was 
a  something  about  six  feet  long,  and  how  wide  we  could 
not  tell,  which  looked  like  an  outlandish  wash-tub  set 
to  soak,  and  which  might,  by  a  vivid  stretch  of  the  im- 
agination, be  likened  to  a  punt. 

"  Well,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  we  will  not  be  stopped 
by  the  Shannon,  or  by  anything  else,  in  doing  what  wc 
have  a  mind  to.  The  horse  that  I  am  on  will  do  any- 
thing that  a  horse  can  do,  and  I  will  make  the  attempt. 
Do  you,  gentlemen,  draw  yourselves  up  so  as  to  protect 
my  crossing,  in  case  of  enemies  lying  on  the  bank 
opposite,  and  I  will  try  what  Diamond  can  do." 

With  that  he  was  about  to  urge  his  horse  into  the 
water,  when  the  constable  called  out — 


Magistrate  Swims  the  River.     1G^^ 

"  Stop,  sir,  stop  !  You  don't  understand  the  strength 
of  the  stream,  or  you  •would  not  attempt  to  cross  straight 
over.  You  must  go  up  a  hundred  yards  or  so,  and  you 
will  find  the  force  of  the  current  will  not  allow  you  to 
land  on  the  other  side  nearer  than  the  point  oppo.'^^ite. 
Better  say  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards  up,  and  pray  take 
care  to  keep  your  horse's  head  well  up  the  stream,  or 
you  will  be  turned  over  in  no  time." 

"  Thank  you,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  for  your  coun- 
sel.    I  always  listen  to  the  advice  of  old  hands." 

Taking  the  stream  at  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
to  the  right,  he  plunged  in,  taking  a  little  leap  from  the 
bank.  He  went  under  water  as  high  as  his  waist,  but 
it  was  only  for  a  moment,  for  as  he  leaped  his  horse 
against  the  stream,  the  force  of  the  current,  aided  by 
the  exertions  of  the  horse  in  an  opposite  direction, 
buoyed  him  up  directly.  lie  had  taken  the  precaution 
of  holding  his  fowling-pieoe  in  his  hand  above  his  head, 
so  'that  his  weapon  escaped  damage. 

The  action  and  struggle  of  the  horse,  guided  by  a 
practised  hand,  were  beautiful  The  rampant  stream 
swept  on  with  a  sort  of  fury,  as  if  ravenous  for  the  prey 
upon  its  bosom,  but  our  young  leader,  as  cool  as  if  he 
was  on  the  high  road,  with  his  fowling-piece  raised  high 
out  of  the  reach  of  the  spray  of  the  waters,  held  on  his 
course,  undismayed  by  the  rushing  waters. 

It  was  a  short  course  and  a  dangerous  one,  for  the 
utmost  efibrts  of  the  noble  and  powerful  animal,  whose 
energies  were  called  forth  to  battle  the  impetuous  current 
of  the  famed  Shannon  River,  were  barely  sufficient  to 
enable  him  to  reach  the  landing-place.  But  he  did 
reach  it,  and  our  breathless  suspense  was  allayed  by  a 


166    Succeeds  in  Getting   a  Boat. 

success  wliicli,  during  its  progress,  seemed  all  but  im- 
possible. 

He  waved  his  gun  to  us  wben  he  was  safe,  and  we 
replied  by  a  cheer,  forgetting  our  habitual  caution,  and 
the  necessity  of  silence  in  a  bush  expedition.  We  then 
observed  him  ascend  the  bank,  and  approach  the  ruined 
hut.  Some  argument  that  he  made  use  of  was  irresisti- 
ble, for  presently,  to  our  great  surprise,  we  saw  a  man 
emerge  from  the  building  in  the  usual  habiliment  of  a 
sojourner  in  the  bush,  that  is,  a  kangaroo  jacket. 

This  detected  individual  proceeded  with  some  alacrity, 
partly  prompted  by  his  desire  to  assist  his  fellow  crea- 
tures in  crossing  the  stream,  and  partly,  I  suspected,  by 
the  persuasive  influence  of  the  magistrate's  gun,  which  I 
observed  to  be  most  pertinaciously  pointed  at  the  head 
of  this  inhabitant  of  the  Shannon,  to  the  place  where  the 
washing-tub  punt  was  moored  under  the  bank.  Some- 
thing that  the  magistrate  said  to  him  seemed  to  have  the 
effect  of  making  him  redouble  his  exertions. 

Having  taken  his  place  in  the  punt,  he  proceeded  to 
creep  up  the  bank,  sometimes  propelling  his  frail  boat  by 
a  sort  of  oar,  and  sometimes  catching  hold  over  the 
shrubs  and  inequalities  of  the  bank.  Having  obtained 
the  requisite  distance  to  enable  him  to  shoot  the  passage, 
he  used  his  paddles  with  the  most  commendable  vivacity, 
stimulated,  perhaps,  by  the  sight  of  a  tolerable  number 
of  gun-barrels  ready  to  inflict  instant  punishment  on  any 
vacillation  or  treachery,  and  quickly  came  to  land  a  lit- 
tle above  the  spot  where  we  were  standing.  When  we 
saw  this  nondescript  species  of  craft,  we  were  amazed  at 
any  one  trusting  himself  to  such  a  speculative  attempt  at 
navigation.     We  looked  at  the  punt,  and  we  looked  at 


Rather  a  Ticklish  Affair.      167 

one  another,  but  no  one  offered  to  take   his  seat  iu  this 
novel  addition  to  the  transport  gei'vice. 

"Now,  Worrall,"  said  one  of  the  constables  to  the 
other,  ''you're  the  man  to  set  the  example.  Did'nt  you 
cross  the  Derwent  once  iu  a  bark  canoe  when  you  were 


"Hold  your  tongue,"  said  Worrall j  "if  I  was  a  fool 
once,  it's  no  reason  why  I  should  be  a  fool  again.  Get 
into  it  yourself  with  your  fat  carcass,  and  then  perhaps 
there  will  be  one  rogue  less  in  the  world." 

"Not  cross  in  my  punt !"  said  the  Columbus  of  Van 
Diemen's  Land;  "why  there's  no  danger  at  all.  There 
uas  a  stock-keeper  last  week  who  crossed,  that  is,  who 
would  have  crossed  if  he  had  not  been  so  obstinate.  He 
u-ould  lift  up  his  head  as  he  was  lying  at  the  bottom  of 
the  punt,  and  of  course  it  upset,  and  I  got  a  wetting,  and 
was  very  near  losing  my  punt.  Uut  it  was  his  own  fault 
that  he  was  drowned.     Now,  misters,  who  comes  first?" 

No  one  seemed  at  all  inclined  to  "  come  first,"  and 
there  were  whisperings  about  wives  and  families,  and 
the  first  duty  of  a  man,  and  such  like.  Meanwhile  the 
magistrate  on  the  other  side,  was  juaking  earnest  ges- 
tures for  us  to  join  him,  and  I  felt  that  it  was  necessary 
for  some  one  to  take  a  decisive  part,  so  I  stepped  forward 
with  the  intention  of  making  the  first  trial.  But  the 
gallant  young  Beresford  anticipated  me,  and,  without 
saying  a  word,  he  placed  himself  in  the  punt,  and  the 
man  of  the  river  pursuing  the  same  process  of  crawling 
up  the  side^of  the  stream  by  which  he  had  reached  us, 
landed  him  safely  on  the  other  side.  This  put  us  all  on 
our  mettle,  and  it  was  not  who  should  shrink  from  the 
risk,  but  who  should  go  first,  that  was  now  the  question* 


168  We  All  Cross  Over. 

I  have  often  tbought  since  of  the  hazard  of  this  crossing, 
and  wondered  how  we  escaped;  but  so  it  was;  we  all 
crossed  over  in  safety,  and  leaving  a  couj^le  of  sentinels 
on  the  outside,  we  all  entered  the  hut. 

We  were  wet,  and  cold,  and  tired.  The  sight  of  glow- 
ing embers,  therefore,  on  the  hearth  was  very  cheering. 
We  quickly  provoked  the  fire  to  a  blaze,  and  enjoyed  the 
warmth  with  unusual  satisfaction.  There  was  a  tripod 
on  the  fire,  in  which  we  immediately  made  tea  for  the 
party,  for  tea  is  always  cherished  as  the  grand  restorer 
of  fatigue  in  bush  excursions;  spirit  heats  and  debilitates, 
but  tea  refreshes  and  strengthens ;  such  is  the  experience 
of  all  in  Van  Diemen's  Land.  I  don't  know  whether 
porter  or  ale  might  not  do  as  well,  or  better;  but  por- 
ter and  ale  are  not  to  be  found  in  the  bush,  and  they 
are  commodities  too  bulky  to  be  carried  about  with  you ; 
so  that  the  universal  ingredient  is  tea;  and  a  rough  look- 
ing stock-keeper,  in  appearance  something  between  a  bear 
and  a  badger,  talks  of  his  tea  with  the  same  gusto  as  an 
old  woman  at  a  Scotch  christening.  With  tea,  then,  we 
made  our  bush  breakfast,  and  as  we  were  all  particularly 
well  pleased  with  our  own  courage  in  crossing  the  river, 
we  were  in  high  spirits. 

We  endeavoured  to  ascertain  from  the  occupant  of 
the  hut  something  of  the  condition  and  probable  route 
of  the  bush-rangers,  but  this  ambiguous  individual  pro- 
tested most  vehemently  that  he  had  seen  nothing  of 
them,  and  that  how  the  marks  of  the  footsteps  came 
which  we  pointed  out  to  him  surpassed  his  comprehen- 
sion ! 

We  knew  that  this  was  a  lie,  and  some  of  us  were 
strongly  inclined  to  shoot  him  on  the  spot,  to  prevent 


We   Proceed.  169 

his  giving  information  about  us;  but  the  magistrato 
prevailed  on  us  to  postpone  this  summary  mode  of  exe- 
cution till  we  came  back,  observing  that  shooting  was 
too  good  for  him,  and  that  he  would  certainly  come  to 
be  hanged  without  our  taking  the  trouble  to  interfere 
in  expediting  so  desirable  a  consummation.  Having 
refreshed  ourselves  and  dried  our  clothes,  and  havino- 
carefully  examined  our  locks  and  ammunition,  we  pro- 
ceeded gaily  on  the  track  of  the  enemy. 


Arrival  at  the  great  lake — Bush-rangers  at  bay — The  Fight — Simul- 
taneous attack  of  the  Natives — Matters  remain  in  suspense — 
Thornley  looks  out  for  a  Kangaroo  for  supper. 

We  followed  the  track,  but  we  could  not  come  up 
with  the  bush-rangers.  We  kept  on  for  about  twenty 
miles  over  a  rough  and  difficult  country,  crossing  the 
big  river  by  a  ford,  till  we  came  to  the  foot  of  a  tier 
of  hills  too  steep  for  a  fatigued  party  to  encounter. 
Here  we  made  a  halt  for  the  night.  The  next  morning 
we  continued  the  pursuit.  When  we  reached  the  top 
of  the  tier,  we  beheld  in  the  bottom  before  us  the  wide 
and  beautiful  lake  then  known  by  the  name  of  Arthur's 
Lake. 

The  scene  was  beautiful  beyond  description.  The 
morning  broke  clear  and  bright,  and  the  sharp  mountain 
air  was  exhilarating  and  exciting.  Behind  us  was  a 
romantic  country  of  undulating  hill  and  dale,  and  before 
us  were  the  tranquil  waters  of  the  great  lake.  We  were 
all  struck  with  the  impressive  character  of  the  scene, 
and  for  some  minutes  we  were  silent. 

"  How  beautiful  and  quiet  the  lake  looks,"  said  our 
leader,  "with  the  morning  sun  lighting  it  up;  it  seems 
a  pity  to  disturb  such  a  place  with  sounds  and  acts  of 
blood  and  battle,  but  I  have  a  notion  that  we  shall  heui 
in  the  bush-rangers  on  the  borders  of  that  lake,  and 
then,  when  wc  bring  them  to  bay,  v,e  mny  prepare  for  a 
(170) 


Arrive   at   the   Great   Lake.      171 

desperate  struggle.  Now,  gentlemen,  if  you  have  satis- 
fied your  love  for  the  picturesque,  we  will  move  on." 

As  well  as  we  could  calculate,  we  were  about  four 
miles  from  the  margin  of  the  lake,  and  we  proceeded  at 
a  tolerably  rapid  pace,  following  the  track  of  the  bush- 
rangers till  we  came  to  its  banks.  Here,  it  seems,  they 
had  come  to  a  halt,  and  were  doubtful  how  to  proceed ; 
for  the  shore  was  much  trampled  by  men  walking  to  and 
fro.  We  did  not  stop  long,  for,  observing  that  the  track 
led  to  the  loft,  wc  followed  it.  It  seemed  that  the  bush- 
rangers were  undetermined  how  to  proceed,  for  they  fol- 
lowed the  winding  of  the  margin  of  the  lake  for  some 
distance,  when,  suddenly  quitting  that  course,  their  track 
led  direct  to  a  point  of  the  lake  where  some  cedar-trees 
grew  on  a  tongue  of  land  stretching  into  the  lake  about 
a  quarter  of  a  mile. 

As  we  proceeded,  we  observed  a  smoke  to  arise  from 
the  extremity  of  this  point,  which  we  had  no  doubt  was 
the  fire  of  the  bush-rangers.  After  our  long  and  toil- 
some pursuit,  we  hailed  this  indicator  of  the  refuge  of 
the  bush-rangers  with  joy  and  satisfaction,  although  with 
a  secret  consciousness  that  the  end  was  not  to  be  attained 
without  a  sharp  and  desperate  struggle.  At  the  en- 
trance of  this  little  peninsula  we  halted,  and  our  leader, 
assuming  the  air  of  one  on  whom  rested  a  serious  respon- 
sibility, urged  on  us  the  importance  of  discipline,  and 
the  necessity  of  attending  strictly  to  orders  in  the  com- 
ing conflict. 

"  My  friends,"  said  he,  "we  are  about  to  engage  with 
men  Avhom  we  are  driving  to  desperation.  If  that  fii-e, 
as  I  believe  it  does,  indicates  the  presence  of  the  bush- 
rangers, you  will  observe  that  our  approach  will  hem 


172       Preparations  tor  Attack. 

them  in,  and  that  they  will  have  no  means  of  escape 
but  by  our  destruction.     Are  you  resolved  and  ready?" 

"  Resolved  and  ready  I"  said  Beresford,  who  had  re- 
covered all  his  energy,  although  looking  a  little  pale 
from  the  effects  of  his  wound ;  "  do  you  think  we  have 
come  thus  far  to  shrink  back  when  the  decisive  moment 
is  come  ?  What  would  any  one  of  us  feel  if  he  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  bush-rangers,  and  saw  his  friends  and 
neighbours  sneaking  off  when  it  came  to  real  blows,  and 
afraid  to  go  on  with  the  enterprise  they  had  begun  ?  I, 
for  one,  am  ready  for  the  worst ;  I  have  been  hit  once, 
but  I  have  no  mind  to  duck  my  head  for  all  that." 

"We  are  all  ready  and  resolved,"  we  said;  "do  you 
lead  us,  and  depend  on  it,  you  may  trust  us  as  if  we  were 
drilled  soldiers." 

"  Then,"  said  he,  ''  let  us  lose  no  time,  but  endeavour 
to  surprise  them  in  their  lurking-place.  I  think  they 
don't  suspect  they  are  followed,  or  they  would  never  have 
chosen  a  ground  from  which  they  have  no  retreat." 

"  Or,  perhaps,"  said  one,  "  they  are  confident  in  their 
strength." 

"  It  may  be  so.  At  any  rate  it  behoves  us  to  use  the 
utmost  caution  and  address  in  our  advance.  And  now 
let  us  move  on." 

We  advanced  accordingly,  with  that  sort  of  tremulous- 
ness  produced  by  excitement,  not  fear,  which  is  apt  to 
pervade  those  on  the  eve  of  a  dangerous  exploit.  But 
our  hope  of  surprise  was  soon  shown  to  be  in  vain,  for 
we  had  not  proceeded  more  than  two  or  three  hundred 
yards,  when  a  shot  from  behind  a  tree  warned  us  that 
our  approach  was  discovered.  This  did  not  stop  our 
advance,  however,  and  rapidly  ascending  a  green  knoll, 


BaTTLK    with    the   Busii-llAiNGKRS.       t73 

■we  beheld  before  us  the  party  of  bush-rangers  in  battle 
array.  We  levelled  our  i^icces,  but  the  voice  of  our 
leader  arrested  our  impetuosity. 

"Stop,"  said  he;  "that  is  not  according  to  promise. 
You  must  not  fire  without  the  word." 

"  The  bush-rangers  will  not  wait  for  the  word,"  said 
one  of  us,  for  at  that  moment  they  fired  a  volley  at  us. 
Again  my  poor  young  friend  Bercsford  had  the  misfor- 
tune to  be  hit.  He  dropped  to  the  ground.  Quitting 
my  party,  I  ran  to  him ;  he  was  bleeding  fast.  Several 
slugs  had  struck  him  on  his  right  side ;  he  was  in  great 
pain,  and  almost  fainting  from  loss  of  blood,  for  the 
jagged  shot  made  from  split  bullets  had  torn  him  sadly. 
Without  losing  a  moment  in  asking  questions,  I  con- 
trived to  drag  him  behind  the  dead  trunk  of  a  tree  which 
was  lying  close  to  us.  Our  leader  lost  no  time  neither. 
In  an  instant  he  formed  our  little  party  in  the  position 
most  advantageous  to  it,  by  moving  us  a  little  to  the 
right. 

Our  enemies  had  not  had  time  to  load  again ;  but  they 
were  busy  about  it,  and  as  they  stood  in  a  position  slant- 
ing from  us,  the  six  shots  fired  promptly,  but  coolly, 
confused  them  not  a  little ;  it  stopped  the  loading  of  more 
than  one  musket,  and  before  they  could  recover  them- 
selves, my  party  of  seven  put  in  a  deliberate  fire,  for  wo 
were  all  used  to  the  bush,  and  were  not  at  all  flurried. 
We  now  observed  three  of  their  men  to  drop ;  but  two 
got  up  again,  one  remaining  on  the  ground,  apparently 
shot  dead.  In  the  meantime,  Beresford's  party  were 
ready  to  fire  again,  and  almost  at  the  same  time  about  a 
dozen  shots  came  from  the  bush-rangers ;  not  one  struck 
us;  but  one  ball  struck  the  hollow  trunk  of  the  tree  be- 


174  Their  Leader. 

liind  whicli  Beresford  was  lying,  and  was  stopped  by  his 
body. 

The  bush-rangers  were  now  ranged  in  a  line  opposite  to 
us,  and  we  counted  thirty-one,  three  having  fallen.    Seve- 
ral of  those,  however,  who  were  standing  in  line  were 
disabled,  for  one  or  two  were  stamping  and  writhing  with 
pain,  and  we  saw  one  man  with  a  fowling-piece  in  his  left 
hand,  and  with  his  right  arm  hanging  down,  and  seem- 
ingly rendered  useless  by  a  shot.     There  was  one  man 
among  the  bush-rangers  whom  we  could  not  help  no- 
ticing and  admiring.     He  was  one  of  the  finest  men  I 
ever   saw.     Tall,  broad-shouldered,  and   muscular,  his 
whole  form  denoted  great  strength,  combined  with  great 
activity.     He  stood  a  little  in  advance  of  his  party,  as 
cool  as  a  cucumber,  and  quite  regardless  of  the  shots  that 
flew  about  him.     As  the  two  parties  were  not  above  a 
hundred  yards  distant  from  each  other,  we  occasionally 
heard  his  voice  encouraging  his  men. 

"Fire  away,  my  hearties,"  he  cried  out,  while  he  was 
reloading  his  musket  with  all  diligence, — "  fire  away ; 
better  die  by  a  musket  ball  than  a  rope." 

With  that  I  saw  him  deliberately  examine  the  pan  of 
his  piece.  •  He  was  not  quite  satisfied  with  its  appearance, 
for  he  paused  for  a  moment,  as  if  in  search  of  something. 
Stooping  down  to  the  ground,  he  picked  up  a  little  twig 
or  stiff  straw,  and  coolly  cleared  the  touch-hole  of  its  ob- 
struction. He  then  primed  the  pan  quickly  but  without 
hurry  from  his  powder-horn,  and  putting  his  musket  to 
his  shoulder,  pointed  it  here  and  there  among  us,  as  if 
seeking  for  the  best  mark.  He  was  not  long  in  finding 
one.  The  magistrate  who  was  on  horseback,  formed  a 
conspicuous  object.     The  other  two  on  horseback  were 


The  Natives  join  in  the  Attack.  175 

beliind  us  among  some  trees,  to  guard  against  a  surprise 
from  the  natives.  I  saw  the  bush-ranger  take  a  quick 
and  steady  aim,  and  immediately  after,  a  cry  from  our 
leader  made  me  fear  that  the  shot  had  taken  effect.  It 
was  certainly  a  capital  shot;  it  went  through  his  hat,  and 
knocked  it  off. 

"  Everybody  seems  to  have  a  spite  against  my  hat," 
said  the  magistrate ;  "  the  natives  sent  a  spear  through 
it  the  other  day,  and  now  these  rascals  have  put  a  bullet 
through  it.  Any  more  of  this  fun  will  spoil  my  best  hat. 
Keep  up  your  fire,"  said  he  to  me  and  my  party.  "This 
bit  of  a  scrimmage  is  no  joke,  gentlemen.  Fire  coolly, 
and  take  aim  at  a  particular  man.  They  are  double  om* 
numbers,  but  we  have  the  advantage  of  position.  Who 
ia  that  man  in  front  ?  There  he  is,  going  to  fire  again ; 
— he  has  fired,  and  one  of  you  is  down.  This  is  a  bad 
job,"  said  he  to  the  wounded  man,  "but  we  can't  help 
it.  But  what  do  I  see  behind  us  ?  The  natives  !  By 
George  !  they  are  on  us  !  Look  out  for  the  spears  !  and 
keep  steady,  for  God's  sake.  Now  we  are  fighting  for 
our  lives  indeed.  Keep  steady,  and  fire  quick.  Keep 
it  up — keep  it  up  !  Show  a  firm  front,  and  I  with  the 
other  two  horses  will  make  a  rush  at  them." 

We  heard  the  natives  at  our  back  uttering  loud  cries 
and  screams,  and  inciting  one  another  to  close  with  us. 
I  had  enough  to  do  to  attend  to  my  own  work,  for  we  were 
almost  tired  with  loading  and  firing,  and  another  shot 
from  the  bush-rangers  tore  open  the  left  arm  of  one  of 
our  party. 

The  yells  of  the  natives  now  became  louder  and 
fiercer,  and  the  fire  of  the  bush-rangers  became  quicker, 
and  I  thought  I  observed  symptoms  of  an  intention  to 


176  Natives  Routed. 

make  a  rusli  at  us,  simultaneously  with  the  advance  of 
the  natives. 

Spears  now  fell  thick  among  us,  and  I  thought  a  crisis 
had  come  which  would  settle  the  fight  without  any  more 
long  shots,  when  suddenly  I  saw  our  leader,  with  the 
two  other  horsemen,  dash  in  among  the  natives,  and 
slash  away  with  their  swords.  They  had  served  in  the 
yeomanry  in  England,  and  understood  the  use  of  the 
broad-sword  well,  and  every  cut  told  on  the  naked  bodies 
of  the  natives.  The  waddies  were  of  no  use  against  the 
broad-swords  of  horsemen,  and  their  slight  spears  were 
not  strong  enough  to  serve  as  pikes,  so  that  they  were 
completely  at  the  mercy  of  the  sabres. 

If  it  had  been  among  trees,  the  horsemen  would  have 
stood  no  chance  against  such  a  body  of  natives ;  they 
would  have  been  riddled  like  sieves  by  their  spears,  with- 
out being  able  to  get  a  cut  at  them ;  but  in  the  plain 
the  horsemen  had  all  the  advantage,  for  the  natives  were 
afraid  of  the  horses  as  much  as  of  the  riders,  and  find- 
ing themselves  imcxpectcdly  assailed  in  that  fashion, 
they  were  for  a  little  while  panic-struck,  and  incapable 
of  resistance.  They  soon  found  the  use  of  their  legs, 
however,  and  they  scampered  off  like  deer  across  the 
little  plain  towards  the  entrance  of  the  peninsula.  The 
horsemen  followed  them  for  some  distance,  and  then  re- 
turned towards  us.  In  the  meanwhile  a  brisk  fii-e  was 
kept  up  on  both  sides. 

We  had  at  this  time  seven  of  our  men  disabled,  and 
about  thirteen  of  the  bush-rangers  were  in  the  same  con- 
dition. But  this  increased  the  odds  against  us;  for  we 
were  now  only  six,  and  with  our  three  friends  on  horse- 
back, nine  against  twenty-one.     But  we  had  the  advan- 


Busn-UANQERS    SLACKEN    THEIR   FlRE.    177 

tage  of  position,  and  we  had  got  rid  of  the  natives ;  but 
the  hazard  seemed  desperate. 

I  now  observed  the  magistrate  with  his  two  compa- 
nions to  the  left  of  the  bush-rangers.  Thoy  had  sheathed 
their  swords,  and  unslung  the  double-barrel  fowliug- 
pieces  which  they  carried  at  their  backs.  All  this  did 
not  take  long  in  \)ccurrence,  though  it  requires  many 
words  to  relate.  They  immediately  fii-ed  at  the  bush- 
rangers and  hit  two  of  them.  This  move  evidently  puz- 
zled the  enemy ;  but  their  leader  soon  formed  his  party 
to  meet  it.  Some  of  them  faced  about  and  fired,  and 
one  of  the  horses  was  hit,  as  I  observed  by  its  plunging 
about. 

The  fire  of  the  horsemen,  however,  sensibly  relieved 
us  from  the  shots  of  the  enemy,  and  our  little  party  of 
six  now  redoubled  their  fire,  and  the  bush-rane;ers  began 
to  waver  and  show  signs  of  unsteadiness.  It  was  plain 
that  their  weapons  were  not  in  the  same  state  of  effi- 
ciency as  ours,  for  although  they  all  had  pieces  of  some 
defcription,  their  fire  was  slack  and  unfrequent,  while 
every  one  of  our  barrels  told ;  besides,  we  were  all  ac- 
customed to  the  use  of  fire-arras,  which  most  of  the 
bush-rangers  were  not.  I  am  inclined  to  think,  too, 
that  they  were  fearful  of  expending  all  their  ammuni- 
tion., which  they  would  have  a  difficulty  in  replacing. 

This  and  other  reasons  combining,  caused  them  to 
slacken  their  fire.  Their  fire-arms,  too,  for  want  of 
proper  cleaning,  and  from  the  damp  of  the  bush,  became 
every  minute  more  and  more  unserviceable,  and  all  the 
wbile  we  were  pelting  them  with  our  shots,  sheltered  by 
the  trees  behind  which  we  fought. 

Once  I  thought  they  had  fully  made  up  their  minds 
12 


178  They  Turn  and  Run. 

to  a  rush,,  and  the  result  might  have  been  fatal  to  us. 
They  gathered  themselves  up  in  a  compact  body,  and 
the  leader  led  them  about  fifty  paces  towards  us  at  a 
running  pace,  but  at  this  distance  our  volley  told  fear- 
fully. We  fired  plump  into  the  midst  of  them,  at  about 
fifty  yards'  distance,  while  the  horsemen  gave  them  the 
contents  of  three  barrels  on  their  left!'. 

This  was  enough  for  them.  Five  fell — two  got  up  again, 
and  three  remained  on  the  ground.  They  now  broke, 
and  ran  away  over  the  little  plain.  Their  leader  was  the 
last  to  run.  He  turned  round,  and  levelling  his  musket, 
gave  us  a  parting  shot.  This  was  the  only  shot  that 
came  close  to  me,  to  my  knowledge,  during  this  bloody 
fight.  The  ball  struck  the  left-hand  side  of  the  tree  be- 
hind which  I  was  standing  loading  my  piece ;  it  knocked 
ofi"  the  end  of  my  ramrod,  which  in  the  act  of  ramming 
projected  of  course  beyond  the  trunk  of  the  tree.  I 
thought  it  an  odd  shot,  but  I  was  too  satisfied  that  it  did 
not  knock  off  me,  to  make  any  remark  about  it  at  that 
time. 

I  thought  the  horsemen  would  have  pursued  the  bush- 
rangers as  they  were  running  off,  but,  contrary  to  my 
expectation,  they  galloped  toward  us. 

''  Keep  where  you  are,  gentlemen,"  said  our  leader. 
''  Don't  let  the  bush-rangers  see  how  we  arc  reduced  in 
number.  On  the  plain  they  would  be  more  than  a  match 
for  us,  and  they  might  turn  and  defeat  us.  We  must  be 
content  with  what  we  have  done,  and  think  ourselves 
well  oif.  And  now  for  our  wounded  friends :  where  is 
the  surgeon  ?" 

*'  He  was  one  of  the  first  of  us  that  was  hit ;  he  is  ly- 
ing on  the  other  side  of  the  mimosa  tree." 


Our  Party   Reduced  to   Nine.    179 

''That's  imlucky;  but  we  must  do  the  best  wc  can. 
Lot  us  see — how  many  of  us  remain  lit  for  service?" 

Six  of  us  stood  forward. 

"  Here  are  six,  and  that  with  myself  and  ray  two  com- 
panions on  horseback,  makes  nine  out  of  eighteen.  A 
melancholy  deficit.  But  with  our  small  numbers  it 
would  be  madness  to  force  a  close  conflict  with  desperate 
men.  ^Ye  must  take  counsel  what  to  do.  In  the  mean 
time  let  us  show  a  bold  front.  I  did  not  expect,  I  must 
confess,  that  the  bush-rangers  would  fight  so  well ;  but 
they  are  desperate,  and  they  feel  that  their  alternative  is 
a  halter." 

We  all  thought  that  our  situation,  with  the  bush- 
rangers in  superior  numbers  on  one  side,  and  with  the 
natives  on  the  other,  was  desperate  indeed.  We  felt  as 
doomed  men  ;  but  unwilling  to  give  up  our  lives  without 
a  struggle,  and  retreat  being  now  as  dangerous  as  to 
stand  where  wc  were — to  say  nothing  of  the  impossibility 
of  our  forsaking  our  wounded  companions — we  deter- 
mined to  sell  our  lives  as  dearly  as  possible.  We  there- 
fore drew  ourselves  up  in  three  parties  of  two  each,  posted 
behind  the  trees. 

In  this  position  we  stood  for  about  half  an  hour  with- 
out any  signs  of  future  attempts  from  the  bush-rangers ; 
they  had  ceased  firing,  and  so  had  we ;  and  presently 
afterwards  they  retired  behind  a  green  ridge  about  a  hun- 
dred yards  behind  them,  close  to  the  water's  edge. 

During  the  fight,  we  had  seen  nothing  of  our  friend 
whom  the  bush-rangers  had  taken  with  them  from  the 
Clyde,  and  to  tell  the  truth,  in  the  urgent  necessity  of 
defeating  them  and  of  defending  our  own  lives,  wc  had 
almost  forgotten  that  his  rescue  was  a  principal  reason 


180  Care  op  Our  Wounded. 

f(ir  our  pursuit  of  the  bush-rangers.  The  horsemen  now 
did  good  service ;  they  served  as  patroles  to  guard  our 
little  party  from  surprise  to  the  right  and  left,  and  ou3 
of  them  made  occasional  excursions  to  the  rear,  to  look 
after  the  natives,  but  it  seemed  they  had  had  enough  of 
it  for  the  present. 

Relieved  from  the  apprehension  of  an  immediate  at- 
tack, we  now  turned  our  attention  to  the  wounded. 
They  had  contrived  to  drag  themselves  behind  the  big 
hollow  log  of  the  tree  where  I  had  placed  poor  Beresford, 
and  we  were  relieved  to  find  them  all  still  living. 

The  course  of  the  conflict  had  drawn  us  more  to  the 
right,  and  in  the  excitement  and  the  noise  of  the  firing 
we  had  not  been  able  to  pay  attention  to  those  who  were 
hit ;  it  was  as  much  as  we  could  do  to  defend  ourselves 
from  being  massacred  by  the  numbers  against  us.  It  was 
an  agreeable  surprise  to  us,  therefore,  to  find  the  sui- 
geon,  with  a  bloody  handkerchief  tied  round  his  head,  as 
busy  as  possible  with  his  patients.  During  his  sojourn 
in  the  colony,  and  indeed  in  the  whole  course  of  his  life, 
he  had  never,  he  said,  had  such  a  favourable  opportunity 
of  gaining  experience  in  gun-shot  wounds. 

I  could  not  help  thinking,  notwithstanding  our  dis- 
tress and  peril,  and  the  ghastly  faces  of  the  wounded, 
that  the  professional  gratification  at  the  sight  of  such  a 
variety  of  lacerations,  acted  like  a  charm  on  his  own 
wound.  Planting  the  two  horsemen,  and  two  on  foot 
as  sentinels,  we  bent  all  our  attention  to  the  care  of  ou'' 
suffering  companions. 

There  was  plenty  of  water  at  no  great  distance;  we 
fetched  some,  and  it  refreshed  them  greatly.  The  sur- 
geon was  sadly  troubled,  however,  at  the  prospoct  of 


The  Surgeon's  Resources.        181 

passing  the  night  in  the  open  air,  for  there  were  three 
of  thcni  in  a  bad  way,  and  he  feared  the  cold,  frosty  air 
of  the  hikes  woukl  be  too  sharp  for  the  sick,  and  we  had 
doubts  al)out  the  prudence  of  lighting  a  fire.  In  this  oc- 
cupation tlie  remainder  of  the  day  wore  away,  when  I 
saw  our  four  dogs  coming  to  lis. 

I  was  startled  at  first,  for  really  I  had  never  missed 
them,  the  fighting  and  firing  having  put  everything  else 
out  of  my  head.  Hector  came  up  to  me  with  a  mean- 
ing air,  as  I  thought,  and  I  looked  at  his  chops,  and 
saw  that  he  had  assisted  in  the  killing  of  a  kangaroo 
not  long  before ;  the  other  dogs  looked  significantly 
about  something,  but  they  kept  in  the  rear  of  Hector, 
paying  a  sort  of  deference  to  his  superior  sagacity  and 
favour.  It  struck  me  that  a  kangaroo  steamer,  if  we 
could  venture  to  make  a  fire  to  cook  it,  would  be  no  bad 
thing  in  our  present  circumstances,  and  it  was  agreed 
that  I  should  go  after  it,  if  it  did  not  lead  me  too  far. 

"Take  my  horse,"  said  the  magistrate;  "if  you 
should  ftill  in  with  the  natives,  he  will  save  you  from  a 
spearing,  and  I'll  stay  to  help  the  surgeon.  He  wants 
some  splints,  he  says,  for  Worrall's  arm,  but  there's  no 
surgical  instrument-maker  with  a  shop  hereabouts,  I 
fancy." 

"I  have  it,"  said  the  surgeon,  "I  have  it;  whore's 
your  axe  ?"  said  he  to  the  other  constable ;  "  hero 
Tucker,  chop  me  a  strip  of  bark  from  this  tree.  That's 
right;  that's  a  capital  piece.  Here,"  said  he,  cutting 
some  longitudinal  slips  in  it,  "  here's  a  beautiful  cradle 
for  a  wounded  arm  !  This  is  another  wrinkle  for  me ! 
I  never  thought,  when  I  was  serving  my  time  in  Aber- 
deen, that  I  should  have  to  invent  splints  from  the  bark 


182  I  ao  TO  Hunt  Supper. 

of  a  gum-tree  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  !  Now,  my  man, 
it's  almost  worth  while  to  get  one's  arm  shattered  a  bit 
to  have  it  done  up  so  nicely;  that's  it;  don't  wince, 
man;  stop,  give  me  a  pocket-handkerchief,  one  of  you, 
or  something;  there — that  will  make  a  nice  soft  bed  for 
it.     A  little  water  do  you  want?" 

"  Couldn't  you  put  a  little  brandy  in  it?" 

' '  No — no  brandy ;  inflammation,  you  know,  and  all 
that.  And  now  for  the  others.  Well,  to  be  sure,  I 
have  enough  to  do  with  you  all.  Where  have  you  been 
hurt,"  said  he,  "  Mr.  Nicholls  ?" 

*'  Here,  on  the  right  side.     I  feel  very  faint." 

"  I  see;  but  we  must  get  out  the  ball ;  it  isn't  deep 
in.  How  to  do  it,  though — that  is  the  question — for  I 
have  not  got  the  tools  with  me." 

"■  I  have  got  a  corkscrew,"  said  Worrall. 

"  A  cork-screw  !  Why,  I  never  did  hear  of  balls 
being  extracted  by  a  cork-screw ;  but — " 

Nicholls  groaned. 

Seeing  that  I  could  be  of  no  use  in  this  difficulty, 
and  thinking  that  the  meat  would  be  a  help  to  us,  I 
slung  my  fowling-piece  behind  me,  and  throwing  the 
horse's  bridle  over  my  arm,  I  set  off  in  search  of  the 
kangaroo.  I  first  did  all  that  it  was  possible  for  me  to 
do  for  my  young  friend  IJoresford.  His  left  arm  had 
been  shattered  by  a  ball,  and  he  was  suffering  the  most 
excruciating  pain.  The  surgeon,  who  was  much  attached 
to  him,  but  who,  under  the  present  circumstances,  made 
no  distinction,  helping  those  first  who  most  wanted 
assistance,  now  took  Bercsford's  case  in  hand,  and  our 
mutual  friend,  the  magistrate,  gave  him  all  the  aid  he 
could  think  of. 


Hector  points  at  unexpected  game — Thornley  meets  with  a  party  of 
Soldiers — His  joy  thereat— His  disajjpointment  thereon — His  la- 
mentable predicament — His  fortunate  escape  from  a  pistol-bullet 
— His  release — A  letter  from  his  Wife — The  Bush-rangers  escape 
to  an  Island  in  the  Lake — Melancholy  news  from  the  Clyde — 
Thornley  resolves  to  return  home. 

The  day  was  drawing  to  a  close;  I  judged  there  was  a 
good  hour  and  a  half  s  daylight.  I  saw  there  was  some- 
thing in  Ilcctor's  manner  more  than  usual,  but  I  set  it 
down  to  the  recent  scrimmage  with  the  natives,  and  the 
firing.  I  bid  him  "  Go  show  !"  He  trotted  on,  and  at 
about  half  a  mile's  distance  he  brought  me  to  the  dead 
kangaroo,  lying  not  far  from  the  lake.  I  did  not  wait  to 
cut  it  up,  but  threw  it  as  it  was  across  the  saddle,  and 
was  about  to  return  to  my  friends,  but  Hector  exhibited 
a  strange  unwillingness  to  go  back,  and  ran  on  a  little 
way  in  the  direction  from  which  we  had  come  from  the 
Clyde. 

Being  well  acquainted  with  his  ways,  and  knowing  the 
wonderful  instinct  of  the  dog,  I  was  uneasy;  my  mind 
being  full  of  the  fear  of  natives  being  at  hand.  But  the 
signs  he  gave  were  not  the  signs  of  natives ;  they  meant 
something  else.  The  bush-rangers,  I  knew,  were  behind 
me,  and  that  they  could  not  pass  our  little  party  without 
an  alarm  being  given.  "  "Well,"  thought  I,  "  the  dog 
knows  something  that  he  seems  to  think  I  ought  to  know 

"  (1S3) 


184  Meet  with  Soldiers. 

too.     I'll  follow  liim  a  little  way  at  any  rate ;"  so  I  tlirew 
down  the  kangaroo  from  the  horse,  and  mounted. 

Hector  seemed  pleased  at  this,  and  knowing  that  I 
could  keep  up  with  him  on  horseback,  he  cantered  off  at 
a  pretty  good  pace,  keeping  the  track  by  which  we  had 
reached  the  lake.  When  we  had  gone  about  a  mile,  I 
stopped ;  but  Hector  still  showed  a  great  anxiety  to  pro- 
ceed. "Well,  Hector,"  said  I,  "I'll  trust  you,  but  I 
can't  understand  what  you  are  at;  if  it  is  to  go  home 
that  you're  trying  for,  that  won't  do."  The  other  three 
dogs  had  staid  by  the  kangaroo,  which  I  had  thrown  on 
the  ground,  so  that  I  was  alone  with  Hector. 

We  had  proceeded  in  this  way  about  three  miles,  and 
I  was  beginning  to  think  I  had  gone  far  enough,  when 
Hector  suddenly  stopped,  and  assumed  the  attitude  of 
pointing  at  game.  ''  What's  in  the  wind  now  ?"  thought 
I.  "Is  it  an  emu  that  the  dog  has  been  bringing  me  to  ? 
It's  worth  a  shot,  however,  for  the  sake  of  the  fat;  but 
I  must  be  wary  !"  I  got  oif  my  horge,  which  I  tied  to  a 
tree,  and  advanced  stealthily  into  the  direction  to  which 
Hector  pointed.  I  had  not  proceeded  more  than  twenty 
steps,  when  to  my  surprise,  and  I  must  confess,  exceed- 
ing fear,  a  quick  sharp  voice  cried  out — 

"  Who  goes  there  ?" 

''More  bush-rangers,"  thought  I;  "now  I'm  in  for 
it!" 

"Who  goes  there?"  repeated  the  voice,  and  I  heard 
the  well  known  click  of  the  cocking  of  a  musket;  it 
came  from  the  direction  of  a  thicket  close  by.  I  looked, 
and  saw  the  muzzle  of  a  musket  projecting  just  beyond 
the  leaves.     I  was  in  a  terrible  fright. 

"  A  friend,"  said  I  in  a  hurry. 


TiiEY  TAKK  Me  for  a  Bush-ranger.  185 

"Stand,  friond;  if  you  move,  I  fire  I" 

"I'm  done  !"  thought  I;  "  it's  all  over!  I  shall  be 
made  a  target  of  by  these  rascals,  and  there's  the  lake 
handy  by  to  throw  nic  into  afterwards  1" 

As  these  horrible  thoughts  crossed  me,  I  heard  the 
peculiar  sound  of  the  shouldering  of  arms  together  by 
drilled  soldiers,  and  immediately  afterwards  a  sergeant's 
party  showed  themselves  in  line  to  the  left  of  the  thicket. 

"  Hurrah  !"  said  I,  jumping  about  in  delight ;  "  well 
done,  Hector  !" 

'<  Hurrah  !  What  the  devil  is  the  man  hurrahing 
about  ?"  said  the  sergeant.  "  I've  a  notion,  my  friend, 
that  the  next  caper  you  cut  will  be  from  a  tight  rope. 
Secure  him  !  Present !  There,  you  see,  resistance  is  of  no 
use.  The  rascal  has  got  a  beautiful  fowling-piece  with 
him,  stolen,  of  course,  from  some  unfortunate  settler." 

"What  the  devil  are  you  about?"  said  I;  "you're 
mistaken " 

"  No  mistake  at  all.  There,  tie  his  arms  behind  his 
back — a  little  tighter.  Two  file,  present  at  him.  Now, 
my  friend,  lead  us  on  to  where  your  other  blackguards 

are  nestling,  or  by ,  you  shall  have  a  couple  of  the 

most  beautiful  balls  through  your  rascally  body  that 
ever  were  cast  by  the  king's  commissioners.  Lead 
on — I  say !  you  won't !  Fix  your  bayonets,  and  touch 
him  up  behind.     Ah,  that  makes  him  move  !" 

"  Holloa  I"  said  I,  "  none  of  that  fun ;  I'm  not  a 
bush-ranger;  I'm  after  them  myself.    I'm  a  gentleman  I" 

The  laugh  that  the  soldiers  set  up  at  this  assumption 
of  dignity  made  the  woods #-ing  again. 

"A  gentleman  !  a  beautiful  gentleman  you  are,  ar'n't 
you  ?  It's  a  pity  you  hav'n't  got  a  glass,  to  see  how  a 
gentleman  looks  when  he  has  taken  to  bush-ranging !" 


186        My  Unpleasant  Position. 

It  struck  me  then  for  the  first  time,  that  my  appear- 
ance might  well  lead  the  soldiers  wrong  as  to  the  personal 
consideration  which  was  due  to  my  standing  in  the 
colony.  I  had  on  my  bush-dress,  which  was  dirtied 
and  stained  with  travel,  and  my  hands,  face,  and  clothes 
were  smeared  with  the  blood  of  my  wounded  companions, 
whom  I  had  recently  been  assisting.  In  addition  to 
these  unfavourable  indications,  my  beard  was  of  three 
days'  growth,  so  that  it  may  be  easily  imagined  that  I 
presented  a  capital  likeness  of  a  hunted  bush-ranger  to 
the  eyes  of  the  soldiers. 

I  might  have  laughed  at  my  ludicrous  position  if  it 
had  not  been  so  dangerous,  for  the  two  soldiers  behind 
me,  with  cocked  muskets  and  fixed  bayonets,  which 
seemed  to  have  been  sharpened  up  for  my  especial  ac- 
commodation, kept  their  fingers,  as  I  observed,  and  I 
shuddered  at  the  sight,  on  their  triggers,  ready  to  treat 
me  with  the  contents  of  their  barrels  at  the  least  sigu 
from  their  commander  5  and  soldiei-s,  I  well  knew,  were 
not  very  particular  about  shooting  a  bush-ranger  in 
the  bush,  and  taken,  as  the  lawyers  say,  in  flagrante 
delicto.  I  was  in  a  cold  sweat,  and  my  excessive  per- 
turbation was  visible  to  the  men. 

"  Look  at  the  sneaking  hound,"  said  the  sergeant; 
"  what  a  desperate  funk  the  coward  is  in  just  at  the 
chance  of  being  shot !  Be  steady,  m.y  men,  don't  shoot 
him  if  you  can  help  it.  Now,  my  beauty,  use  your 
stumps." 

"  I'll  take  you,"  said  I,  with  a  sort  of  desperate 
eagerness,  "  to  where  you  will  find  the  bush-rangers- — 
and—" 

"  Oh — you  will,  will  you  ?     You're  a  nice  fellow  for 


Suspected  as  a  Murderer!   187 

a  oush-ranger !  A  pretty  blackguard  you — to  betray 
your  comrades !" 

"  I  don't  betray  any  body,"  said  I.     "  I " 

"  Hold  your  jaw,"  said  the  sergeant,  "  and  get  on,  or 
you  shall  have  another  spur  from  behind ;  and  take  caro 
you  don't  think  of  betraying  us,  or  you'll  regret  it  as 
long  as  you  live,  though  that  wouldn't  be  long,  you  may 
depend  on  it.  And — hold  your  jaw,"  again  said  he, 
seeing  I  wanted  to  speak — "  lead  us  to  your  comrades  in 
silence;  we  don't  want  you  to  give 'em  notice  of  our 
coming  by  your  blackguard  and  treacherous  tongue." 

Compelled  thus  to  be  silent,  with  my  arms  tied  behind 
my  back,  if  I  had  been  inclined  to  philosophize,  I  might 
have  mused  on  the  instability  of  human  affairs  ;  but  my 
contemplations  were  interrupted  by  the  sight  of  my 
horse  with  his  bridle  hooked  over  the  branch  of  a  tree. 

''0,  ho!"  cried  out  my  tormentor,  "bush-rangers 
ride  a-horscback  now-a-days,  do  they  ?  The  Clyde  ma- 
gistrate's horse,  by  George  !  You  infernal  rascal ! 
you've  shot  the  magistrate,  that's  clear  ;  and  here's  his 
gun  that  you  stole.  Don't  speak;  we  want  none  of  your 
lies.  Williams,  lead  the  horse.  Oh  !  the  villain,  to 
shoot  a  magistrate  !  A  hush-rangei'  to  shoot  a  magis- 
trate !  !  That  deserves  double  hanging  !  Now,  don't 
attempt  to  give  us  any  of  your  jaw,  or  we'll  gag  you  in 
no  time.  Prick  him  up  behind  if  he  speaks.  A  mur- 
dering bush-ranger  is  not  going  to  come  over  us,  at  any 
rate." 

"A  pretty  situation,"  thought  I,  '<for  an  old  Surrey 
farmer,  and  middle-aged  gentleman  to  be  in !  After  I 
have  escaped  being  shot  by  the  bush-rangers,  it  seems 
that  I  am  now  more  likely  to  be  summarily  executed  by 


188     Application  of  the  Bayonet. 

a  sergeant's  party  of  soldiers !  Well,  this  is  the  last 
time  that  I  will  ever  go  a-hunting  of  bush-rangers — 
that's  certain/' 

All  this  I  said  to  myself,  for  the  terrible  sergeant  had 
his  eye  on  me,  and  I  feared  that  if  I  opened  my  lips  I 
might  have  a  couple  of  balls  through  my  body,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  points  of  the  bayonets,  the  smart  of 
whose  application  was  uncommonly  disagreeable. 

In  this  trim  we  marched  on.  I  looked  round  for 
Hector,  but  he  had  disappeared.  After  a  three  miles' 
march,  we  came  to  the  dead  kangaroo,  which  the  dogs, 
for  some  reason,  had  abandoned. 

"  Here's  their  dinner,"  said  the  sergeant ;  "  and  a 
very  pretty  piece  of  venison  it  is.  We  are  right  on  the 
track,  I  see  j  there  it  leads.  We  are  not  far  from  the 
rascals  now,  I'm  thinking.  What  says  our  honest 
friend  here  ?  He  nods  his  head.  He's  wise.  (Here  I 
rubbed  myself  against  a  tree  at  the  place  where  I  felt 
the  smart  of  the  bayonet.)  Oh — I  see,  he  knows  how 
to  take  a  hint.  Now  for  the  kangaroo.  Johnson,  you're 
a  clever  chap  with  your  knife.  Just  divide  him  at  the 
loins  here." 

•'  How  shall  we  carry  him  ?"  said  one. 

"  Put  it  on  the  horse,  to  be  sure,"  said  one  of  the 
soldiers. 

"  On  the  horse  !"  .said  the  sergeant  •  "no,  you  would 
not  dirty  the  magistrate's  saddle  that  way;  But — eh  ! 
it  is  dirty  already,  and  with  blocd,  too  !  That's  the  poor 
magistrate's  blood  !  Oh,  you  murdering  villains — won't 
you  catch  it  for  this  ?  Here — stick  the  kangaroo  on  his 
shoulders,  and  let  him  carry  it  for  us.  Not  a  word  I 
Let  him  feel  the  point  of  your  bayonet,  Steadman — that's 


Arrive   near  the  Encampment.  189 

enough  !  Why,  it  makes  him  dance  with  the  kangaroo 
on  his  shoulders.  Now  for  it — move  on,  my  men,  and 
keep  awake — there's  mischief  near,  by  tliis  blackguard's 
looks,  I'm  thinking." 

I  was  straining  my  eyes  to  endeavour  to  discover  some 
sign  of  friendly  help  to  release  me  from  my  very  disa- 
greeable situation,  and  it  was  my  gaze  that  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  vigilant  sub-officer.  13ut  it  was  now 
getting  dark,  and  I  could  distinguish  nothing  but  the 
dim  and  thick  foliage  of  the  cedar-trees,  and  the  wide 
and  cold  looking  expanse  of  the  dreary  lake.  The  ser- 
geant took  the  lead  on  the  track  by  which  I,  with  my 
companions,  in  the  morning,  had  followed  the  bush- 
rangers to  their  retreat,  and  we  presently  entered  the 
neck  of  laud  at  the  extremity  of  which  we  had  hemmed 
them  in. 

"  A  likely  place  for  a  nest  of  vipers  to  lurk  in,"  said 
the  talkative  sergeant,  in  a  low  voice ;  "  but  what  do  I 
see  there  ?  Halt  I  Steadman,  take  two  file,  and  examine 
that  odd-looking  lump  there." 

Steadman  departed,  and  reported  in  military  style, 

"  It's  a  dead  native ;  he's  been  slashed  all  to  pieces 
with  broad-swords.  He's  quite  warm,  and  seems  only 
just  dead." 

"  Broadswords !  natives  !  oh,  the  cruel  villains,  they 
have  been  killing  the  natives  to  boil  them  down  for  their 
fat  to  make  bush-candles  !  What  a  horrid  set !  But 
now,  silence  !  no  more  talking;  let  no  man  speak  a  word. 
We  can't  be  far  off  from  the  villains,  for  this  neck  of 
land  doesn't  stretch  above  a  quarter  of  a  mile  into  the 
lake;  so  now,  my  men,  be  awake,  for  we  shall  have  a 
brush  presently.     Now,  my  friend  with  the  kangaroo, 


190  Fortunate  Escape. 

we  will  take  the  liberty  to  gag  you ;  we  can't  liave  our 
precious  lives  put  in  jeopardy  by  your  treachery.  Open 
your  mouth,  you  blackguard,  or  I'll  wrench  it  open  with 
the  end  of  my  firelock.  There,  now  you're  quite  com- 
fortable— so  move  on." 

"We  moved  on  accordingly,  leaving  the  horse  tied  to  a 
tree  in  silence,  and  in  Indian  file,  the  wary  old  sergeant 
using  every  art  to  surprise  without  being  surprised.  It 
was  nearly  dark,  so  that  we  came  on  one  of  our  horsemen, 
who  was  standing  sentinel,  without  his  perceiving  us,  so 
silent  and  cautious  were  our  movements.  At  the  sight 
of  him,  at  not  many  yards'  distance,  we  halted;  but  the 
sentinel's  horse  was  aware  of  our  approach  before  the  less 
acute  senses  of  his  master  had  distinguished  us.  He 
snorted  and  betrayed  our  advance.  The  horseman  imme- 
diately fired  one  of  his  pistols  at  us,  and  galloped  off  to 
give  the  alarm. 

The  hind-quarter  of  the  kangaroo  on  my  shoulder, 
being  the  most  conspicuous  object  of  the  party,  attracted 
the  attention,  I  presume,  of  the  horseman,  for  the  pistol- 
shot  struck  one  of  the  thigh  bones  of  the  animal,  and  the 
leo-s  being  tied  tight  to  my  person,  the  shock  knocked  me 
and  my  burthen  down. 

''There's  a  shot  that  has  robbed  the  gallows,"  said 
the  sergeant.  "  Don't  be  in  a  hurry,  my  menj  take  it 
coolly." 

They  had  not  advanced  many  paces,  however,  before 
they  were  confronted  by  the  magistrate,  with  all  our  party 
who  could  act.  I  could  just  distinguish  them  as  I  lay  on 
the  ground,  in  an  attitude  of  preparation  for  mutual  at- 
tack. The  steady  discipline,  however,  of  the  military, 
and  their  habitual  coolness  in  danger,  saved  both  parties 
from  a  murderous  discharge. 


Rejoin  olr  Party.  191 

"  Wc  arc  a  party  of  soldiers,"  said  the  sergeant,  "  and 
we  are  too  strong  fur  you.  You  had  better  surrender, 
and  trust  to  the  governor's  mercy." 

"  Hurrah  !"  cried  out  the  supposed  bush-rangers. 

''Hurrah  !"  said  the  cool  old  sergeant,  almost  inclined 
to  be  offended  at  this  apparent  insult  to  his  dignity. 
"  Hurrah  !  You're  very  fond  of  hurrahing,  my  fine  fel- 
lows. The  first  thing  that  other  chap  that  one  of  you  has 
just  shot  said  was  hurrah!  but  I  ni  thinking " 

"It's  all  right/'  said  a  voice  I  was  glad  to  hear;  ''we 
are  friends  !" 

"  The  magistrate  of  the  Clyde  !  Well,  I'm  glad  you 
are  safe,  but  I  hoped  you  were  bush-rangers.  The  Lord 
forgive  me,  I  hope  I  have  not  made  a  mistake  with  the 
other  man." 

"  What  man  ?  wliat  do  you  mean?" 

"Why,  we  got  hold  of  a  terribly  ill-looking  chap,  I 
must  say — one  of  the  most  ferociousest-looking  bush- 
rangers I  ever  set  eyes  on ;  and  we  were  bringing  him 
along  with  us,  when  your  sentinel,  I  suppose  he  was,  fired 
off"  his  piece  and  shot  him.  But  I  hope  there's  no  harm 
done." 

''It's  Thornley,  I'll  be  bound/'  said  the  magistrate; 
"  where  is  he  ?" 

"  Oh,  he's  not  far  off." 

My  friends  immediately  came  to  seek  me  in  a  body.  It 
was  some  little  time  before  they  could  pitch  upon  the  spot 
where  I  lay,  for  being  gagged  I  was  not  able  to  respond 
to  their  inquiries.  At  last,  however,  they  found  me,  and 
as  it  was  dark,  in  a  seemingly  desjxiratc  plight.  W^et 
with  the  blood  of  the  kangaroo,  which  was  bound  tight 
to  me,  and  with  my  arms  tied  behind  my  back,  and 


192         A   Letter   from  My  Wife. 

gagged,  the  only  gigns  of  life  that  I  gave  was  by  low 
and    hollow  groans. 

"  He  is  almost  gone,  poor  fellow,"  said  my  friends  j 
"  but  let  us  release  him  from  his  bonds." 

They  untied  my  arms,  and  loosened  the  fastening  of 
the  kangaroo,  and  feeling  about  my  face,  they  discovered 
that  I  was  gagged.  I  was  quickly  relieved  from  this 
stopper;  and  the  first  thing,  I  remember,  that  I  said  was, 
"  Take  care  of  the  kangaroo;  it's  the  finest  haunch  lever 
saw,  and  we  shall  want  it  for  supper." 

"Well,"  said  the  magistrate,  "you  can't  be  very  bad 
after  all,  if  you  are  wanting  your  supper.  Come,  tell 
us  all  about  it." 

I  told  them  how  I  was  mistaken  for  a  bush-ranger, 
not  forgetting-  the  hint  a  posteriori  which  the  soldiers 
had  given  me  to  hold  my  tongue,  so  that  I  had  not  the 
opportunity  of  explaining  the  mistake.  I  believe  that  I 
narrated  this  part  of  my  mishap  so  ruefully,  that  it  was 
impossible  for  them  to  resist  the  temptation  to  laugh  at 
the  mingled  danger  and  drollery  of  my  position,  and  then 
and  there  they  set  up  such  a  burst  of  merriment  as  must 
have  startled  and  astonished  the  bu^h-rangers  if  they 
were  within  hearing.  Being  now  confident  in  our 
strength,  by  this  addition  to  our  numbers,  of  the  party 
of  military,  we  lighted  a  fire  and  cooked  the  kangaroo 
after  the  usual  bush  fashion. 

"  Thornley,"  the  magistrate  began  to  say 

"  Thornley  !"  said  the  sergeant ;  "  I've  a  letter  for 
that  gentleman.  Sorry  to  be  the  bearer  of  ill  news,  sir, 
but  your  house  and  farm  have  been  burned  down.  But 
this  letter  will  tell  you  all.  There  is  another  for  a  gen- 
tleman of  the  name  of  Beresford — here  it  is.     Oh,  sorry 


T  H  E    B  A  D    N  E  W  S    I  N    I  T  .  193 

to  see  you've  been  Lit,  sir;  but  it's  nothing  when  you 
are  used  to  it.  Here — let  me  hold  this  piece  of  lighted 
wood  near  you,  that  you  may  see  to  read  it." 

Availing  myself  of  the  same  light,  I  read,  with  an 
anguish  which  it  would  be  in  vain  for  me  to  endeavour 
to  express,  the  following  letter  : 

''  Dearest  Husband — The  sad  misfortune  that  has 
befallen  us,  and  the  fright  and  cold  of  the  night,  havQ 
so  shaken  me  that  I  can  scarcely  write  to  you,  and  the 
soldiers  cannot  wait  long  for  my  letter,  as  they  are  in  a 
hurry  to  go  after  the  bush-rangers.  Thank  God  !  thera 
are  no  lives  lost,  but  the  house  is  burned  down  to  tha 
ground,  and  almost  everything  that  was  in  it.  Tha 
large  wheat  stack,  they  tell  me,  is  burning  now.  How 
the  fire  began,  I  do  not  know.  Dick  let  the  horses  out 
of  the  stable,  so  that  they  were  saved,  but  the  saddles 
and  all  the  harness  are  burned  or  spoiled. 

"  The  cattle  were  got  out  of  the  stock-yard  in  time ; 
but  the  home  flock  of  merinos  is  dispersed  in  the  bush. 
The  wind  was  very  high,  and  unfortunately  the  fire  be- 
gan at  the  further  end,  so  that  it  embraced  all  the  build- 
ings except  the  new  barn.  The  large  pile  of  sawed  stuiF, 
and  the  stock  of  firewood  helped  to  do  the  mischief,  for 
they  caught  fire  early,  and  communicated  it  to  the  house. 
As  to  trying  to  put  out  the  fire  with  water  from  the 
pond,  it  was  all  useless.  We  longed  for  the  London 
fire-engines.  Poor  Lucy  Moss  was  the  first  who  gave  the 
alarm  ;  she  was  awakened  by  the  blaze  of  the  wood-stnck, 
and  very  soon  afterwards  the  house  was  in  flames.  The 
men  did  not  like  to  go  near  it,  as  they  were  frightened 
at  the  little  keg  of  gunpowder  that  was  brought  up  about 
13 


194  The  News  from   Home. 

a  fortniglit  ago.     We  are  all  housed  at  the  old  stock-hut 
by  the  creek,  and  all  om-  neighbours  are  very  kind. 

"It  is  now  seven  o'clock.  A  sergeant's  party  of  sol- 
diers has  been  sent  by  the  governor  after  these  bush- 
rangers. They  saw  our  fire  in  the  night,  and  thought  it 
was  the  bush-rangers  who  had  attacked  us.  They  were 
out  lying  on  the  Den  Hill,  about  five  miles  from  us,  but 
they  hurried  to  the  spot,  and  gave  us  all  the  help  they 
could,  but  help  was  useless  against  such  a  fire  ;  however, 
it  saved  a  few  things  for  us.  I  am  terribly  uneasy  about 
you,  as  we  have  heard  nothing  of  you  since  you  left  to 
go  in  search  of  Mr.  Moss,  and  I  am  glad,  indeed,  that 
the  soldiers  are  going  on  your  track.  The  sergeant  seems 
a  most  determined  fellow,  but  very  grim-looking ;  you 
will  be  glad  enough  when  you  find  yourself  among  them. 
They  say  that  if  they  catch  hold  of  a  bush-ranger  they 
will  make  short  work  of  him,  for  the  bush-rangers  shot 
one  of  the  soldiers  at  Pitt  Water,  and  the  others  are 
very  much  enraged  at  it. 

'  I  hope  to  Heaven  that  you  get  safe  out  of  this  affair, 
and  let  the  soldiers  go  on  with  it,  for  it  is  their  business 
to  go  after  bush-rangers.  However,  my  hope  is,,  that  the 
soldiers  may  soon  fall  in  with  you,  and  then  I  do  not 
doubt  you  will  feel  safe  and  comfortable.  William  wants 
to  go  with  the  soldiers  to  join  you,  but  I  have  persuaded 
him  to  stay  with  us,  as  he  is  of  more  use  here. 

"  The  old  sergeant  says  he  mtisf  go  now.  Farewell, 
and  Heaven  protect  you !  Pray  try  to  come  back 
directly,  as  there  will  be  plenty  of  people  to  fight  with 
the  bush-rangers  without  you,  when  the  soldiers  join 
your  party. 

"  Your  affectionate  and  anxious 

"  Mary  Thornley." 


Attack  the  Rangers.  195 

While  I  read  this  disastrous  intelligence  by  the  light 
of  the  cedar-stick  which  the  sergeant  held  for  the 
wounded  Beresford's  accommodation,  preparations  were 
promptly  made  by  the  magistrate  for  a  night  attack  on 
the  bush-rangers,  in  order  to  take  them  by  surprise 
before  they  could  be  aware  of  the  arrival  of  the  soldiers. 

What  Beresford's  letter  contained  I  had  no  opportu- 
nity at  that  time  of  knowing,  although  I  observed  he 
read  it  over,  short  as  it  was,  very  earnestly  two  or  three 
times,  and  then  put  it  by  very  carefully.  I  was  in  a 
manner  stupefied  for  a  while  by  the  intelligence  of  my 
wife's  letter,  and  undetermined  how  to  act.  My  first 
impulse  was  to  hasten  home  immediately,  but  that  was 
more  easily  said  than  done,  for  I  was  upwards  of  thirty 
miles  from  home,  and  the  country  was  a  desolate  one  to 
travel  through,  and  difficult  to  cross.  Besides,  there 
was  reason  to  believe  that  the  natives  were  between  our 
party  and  the  settlements,  and  it  was  a  risk  of  too  great 
danger  to  encounter  them  single-handed.  While  I  was 
hastily  revolving  these  thoughts,  the  word  was  given 
for  volunteers  to  step  forward  for  the  night  attack. 

"  We  don't  want  any  volunteers  for  this  business," 
said  the  sergeant ;  "  you  had  better  leave  it  to  us,  and 
stay  where  you  are  to  take  care  of  your  wounded  men. 
We  are  enough  without  you,  and  I  warrant,  if  we  come 
on  the  rascals,  we'll  give  a  good  account  of  them." 

''Ah!  Mr.  Sergeant,"  said  the  magistrate,  "you 
want  to  have  all  the  fun  to  yourselves.  But  I  think 
you  are  right  this  time.  I  think,  gentlemen,  we  had 
better  stay  where  we  are,  and  take  care  of  our  friends. 
I  will  go  with  the  soldiers,  because  the  presence  of  a 
magistrate  may  be  useful;  and  do  you,  Worrall,  come 
with  me  ;  you  can  act  as  a  messenger,  if  you're  wanted." 


196  TuE  Rangers  Escape  to  an  Island. 

They  set  out  accordingly,  and  we  remained  by  our 
fire,  keeping  strict  watch,  however,  and  full  of  anxiety 
for  the  issue  of  the  adventure.  We  remained  in  sus- 
pense about  a  couple  of  hours,  when  Worrall  returned 
and  reported  that  they  could  see  no  signs  of  the  bush- 
rangers. Presently  afterwards  the  soldiers  came  back, 
and  the  sergeant  posted  some  of  them  at  intervals  across 
the  neck  of  land,  so  as  to  prevent  the  bush-rangers  from 
stealing  past  us  in  the  night. 

"  We  need  not  be  in  a  hurry,"  said  the  sergeant ; 
"  we  have  them  safe,  and  when  the  daylight  comes,  we 
can  catch  them  like  rats  in  the  corner." 

''A  pent  rat  is  a  dangerous  animal,"  said  Beresford. 

In  this  position  we  waited  till  daylight ;  when,  leav- 
ing the  two  horsemen  to  act  as  sentinels  for  the  wounded 
party,  we  all  proceeded  to  the  point  where  we  calculated 
the  bush-rangers  would  be  found.  In  this  expectation, 
however  we  were  disappointed ;  we  could  see  no  traces 
of  them.  Pursuing  our  search,  we  discovered  footsteps 
at  the  water's  edge,  with  the  furrows  inade  by  the  drag- 
ging of  pieces  of  dead  timber  from  the  bank  to  the 
water.  Some  little  bits  of  hide-rope  were  scattered  here 
and  there,  as  if  recently  cut, 

"  Depend  upon  it,"  said  the  experienced  Worrall, 
"  they  have  been  watching  us,  and  saw  the  arrival  of 
the  soldiers,  and  as  a  last  shift  they  have  made  a  raft 
of  the  dead  timber,  and  floated  away  to  the  little  island 
of  snakes  yonder.  They  could  easily  do  it,  for  it  is  not 
above  a  quarter  of  a  mile  over.  Anything  to  escape 
hanging  !" 

"And  how  are  we  to  follow  them?"  said  the  sergeant: 
"  why  they  would  pick  us  off  like  cockatoos  a-roosting 


I  START  FOR   Home.  197 

if  we  were  to  approach  them  that  way  !  But  they  must 
soon  starve  there  for  want  of  provisions.  Well,  we 
must  keep  a  sharp  lookout,  and  see  what's  to  be  done. 
If  we  had  a  boat  now,  we  could  venture  it,  though  that 
would  be  a  ticklish  job." 

"A  boat!"  said  I;  "why  I  know  there's  a  boat  hid 
somewhere  hereabouts,  by  a  party  who  visited  the  lake 
last  year.  I  remember  they  told  me  it  was  hid  at  the 
end  of  a  neck  of  land  like  this,  on  the  left-hand  side  of 
the  lake." 

"  In  that  case,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  it  is  very  likely 
to  be  found  on  that  peninsula  that  you  can  see  about 
three  miles  off  there;  at  any  rate  we  can  look  for  it. 
But,  Thornley,  you  are  wanting  to  get  home,  I  dare  say, 
and  we  can  do  without  you  now.  Take  my  horse,  if  you 
like,  and  if  you  think  it  safe  to  venture,  which  I  must 
tell  you  I  doubt.  But  of  course  you  must  be  anxious  to 
get  home." 

"There  is  not  much  of  a  home  left  for  me,"  said  I; 
"  but  I  should  like  to  get  to  my  family  as  quickly  as 
possible,  and  if  I  can  trust  your  horse  I  will  risk  it,  for 
I  am  not  wanted  here  now." 

"  Oh,  you  may  trust  the  horse  ;  he  will  take  the  water 
like  a  duck — only  give  him  his  head  ; — and  you  may  fire 
from  his  back  like  an  arm-chair;  he  will  stand  as  steady 
as  a  rock." 

"  Well  then,"  said  I,  "  I'll  go.  So  taking  leave  of  my 
young  friend,  Beresford,  and  bidding  good-by  for  the 
present  to  my  companions,  I  left  them  to  continue  their 
pursuit  of  the  bush-rangers,  and  set  out  on  my  way  home. 
It  would  have  been  well  for  me  had  I  remained ;  but  I 
little  anticipated  the  disasters  and  perils  which  beset  me 


198  Am   Lost  in   the  Bush. 

on  this  memorable  journey  through  a  difficult  and  deso- 
late country.  The  account  of  the  six  days,  however,  du- 
ring which  I  was  lost  in  the  bush,  and  the  adventures 
that  befell  me,  must  form  the  subject  of  another  chap- 
ter." 


(DjjnptH  iBDuntBriitli. 

Thornley  sets  out  for  the  Clyde  ;    tries  to  make  a  short   cut,  and 
misses  his  way — He  is  lost  in  the  Bush. 

It  was  at  the  close  of  the  month  of  May,  the  beginning 
of  the  winter  season  in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  that  I  quit- 
ted my  companions  on  the  borders  of  the  Great  Lake, 
and,  full  of  sad  and  anxious  thoughts,  turned  my  course 
towards  home.  I  took  care  before  starting  to  examine 
my  double-barrel  fowling-piece  minutely,  as  well  as  the 
holster  pistols  at  the  saddle ;  with  these  four  barrels  and 
my  broad-sword,  I  considered  myself  a  match  for  any 
casual  attack,  as  my  object  was  to  make  the  best  of  my 
way  home,  and  to  avoid  any  encounter,  either  with  bush- 
rangers or  natives.  Besides,  as  the  distance  from  the 
Clyde  was  not  much  more  than  thirty  miles,  and  my 
horse  was  good,  I  calculated,  that  although  part  of  the 
country  was  hilly  and  difficult,  and  that  I  had  lost  some 
hours  of  the  morning  light  before  I  set  out,  I  could  reach 
home  before  the  end  of  the  nicht. 

Hector,  who  had  watched  me  very  closely  all  the  morn- 
ing, and  had  seemed  particularly  inquisitive  as  to  what  I 
was  about,  of  course  accompanied  me,  and  Fly  accom- 
panied him.  In  this  fashion  I  travelled  on,  nothing 
doubting  that  my  journey,  dull  and  solitary  as  it  was, 
would  come  to  its  natural  termination  after  the  usual 
fatigue ;  but  I  little  guessed  what  was  in  store  for  me, 

I  had  gone  about  three  or  four  miles,  when  I  came  to 

(199) 


•200        TiiY  TO  Make  a  Short   Cut. 

the  foot  of  a  sharp  hill,  part  of  aa  irregular  tier  of  hills, 
stretching  from  the  lake  to  the  south-east.  When  I  had 
come  down  this  descent  with  my  couipanions,  in  pursuit 
of  the  bush-rangers,  I  had  not  particularly  remarked  its 
steepness,  but  as  I  stood  at  its  base,  and  in  a  manner 
under  it,  I  felt  a  strong  desire  to  avoid  the  task  of  climb- 
ing up  the  height,  and  I  east  my  eyes  about  to  see  if 
there  was  any  break  in  the  tier  that  presented  the  pros- 
pect of  a  less  difficult  assent. 

I  observed  to  the  right  a  hollow  which  promised  an 
easier  passage,  and  as  I  had  always  strongly  in  my 
mind,  that  it  was  no  farther  to  go  round  a  hill,  than  to  go 
over  it,  I  turned  my  horse's  head,  without  a  hesitation, 
in  that  direction.  When  I  reached  the  hollow,  however, 
it  proved  delusive,  and  I  found  mj'self  in  a  sort  of  bay 
surrounded  by  hills,  not  very  high,  but  very  steep. 
Still,  full  of  the  desire  to  avoid  climbing  a  hill  at  the 
beginning  of  a  journey,  and  having  a  sort  of  lazy  dis- 
inclination to  dismount,  I  continued  my  way  somewhat 
farther  to  the  right,  expecting  to  find  the  outlet  that  I 
wanted. 

In  this  way  I  was  led.to  try  several  tempting  valleys, 
which  all  ended  like  the  fii'st,  in  disappointment.  Vexed 
at  the  loss  of  distance  and  the  loss  of  time  which  these 
attempts  cost  me,  I  determined  to  be  baffled  no  longer, 
and  dismounting  at  the  foot  of  a  high  hill,  I  proceeded 
to  climb  to  the  top,  leading  my  horse  by  the  bridle. 
When  I  reached  the  summit,  I  fluttered  m3^self  that  I  was 
rewarded  for  my  labour  by  the  discovery  of  a  valley 
which  stretched  to  some  distance,  and  by  which,  it 
seemed,  I  should  be  able  to  escape  the  fatigue  of  the 
continual  ascents  and  descents  which  I  should  have  had 


Get  Lost.  201 

to  surmount  by  pursuing  the  original  track  to  the  luft. 
I  never  doubted  but  I  should  be  able  to  find  my  way  to 
the  Clyde  by  some  way  or  other,  for  the  thought  of 
being  lost  in  the  bush,  and  on  horseback  too,  never  oc- 
curred to  me. 

I  cantered  pleasantly  down  this  valley,  which,  with  oc- 
casional windings,  and  one  or  two  gentle  ascents,  con- 
tinued for  five  or  six  miles,  when  I  was  suddenly  brought 
to  a  stand-still  by  finding  myself  in  the  same  difiiculty 
as  before,  the  valley  ending  in  a  little  deep  bay  sur- 
rounded by  steep  hills.  "  Well,"  thought  I,  "  as  I  have 
come  so  far,  I  am  not  going  to  be  stopped  by  a  hill  now 
though  it  is  a  tough  one,  and  at  any  rate  I  have  had  an 
easy  five  miles  through  the  valley." 

So  without  stopping  to  think  more  on  it,  I  got  off  my 
horse,  and  leading  him  by  the  end  of  the  bridle,  I  scram- 
bled up  the  hills.  It  was  a  very  sharp  climb,  and  when 
I  got  to  the  top,  the  prospect  was  rather  discouraging. 
A  succession  of  hills  was  before  me,  like  the  waves  of  a 
troubled  sea  suddenly  solidified.  The  hills  looked  like 
gigantic  waves.  "Hills  or  plains,"  thought  I,  "  I  must 
get  through  you;  I  can't  miss  the  '  lie'  of  the  country; 
and  so  long  as  I  pursue  the  right  direction,  I  must  come 
to  the  end  of  my  journey  atlag|^"  So  I  worked  my  way 
on,  sometimes  riding,  sometimes  walking,  but  imbed- 
ding myself  more  and  more  among  the  intricacies  of  the 
hills. 

At  last  I  got  tired  of  this  work,  and  my  horse  began 
to  be  tired  too,  so  at  the  bottom  of  one  of  these  punch- 
bowls I  sat  down  to  rest  myself;  Hector  and  Fly  lay 
down  beside  me,  and  my  poor  horse,  with  his  head  hang- 
ing down,  looked  very  doleful.     By  this  time  the  day 


202  Worse  and  Worse. 

liad  become  overcast  with  a  sort  of  mist,  so  that  I  could 
not  see  the  sun,  and  the  valley  in  which  I  was  resting 
looked  very  gloomy  indeed.  "  I  don't  like  this/'  said 
I ;  "  but  I  must  have  another  try  at  it." 

I  took  off  my  horse's  saddle,  and  gave  him  a  rub  down, 
and  cooled  his  back  a  bit;  then  I  set  myself  to  consider 
the  direction  of  the  Clyde.  I  was  puzzled ;  and  I  be- 
gan to  feel  that  uneasy  sensation  which  besets  one  who 
has  lost  his  way.  But  my  head  was  cool ;  and  after  cal- 
culating as  well  as  I  could  the  turnings  and  windings  by 
which  I  had  reached  the  present  spot,  I  decided  on 
making  my  way  right  across  the  tier  to  my  left.  Pat- 
ting my  horse,  and  speaking  to  Hector  and  Fly  encourag- 
ingly, I  set  at  the  hill  boldly. 

I  found  this  climb  more  difficult  than  any  of  the  pre- 
vious ascents;  and  when  I  had  finished  it,  fagged  as  I 
was,  it  quite  chilled  me  when  I  found  that  I  was  no 
better  off  than  before ;  nothing  but  hills  upon  hills,  as 
far  as  the  misty  atmosphere  would  allow  the  eye  to  pene- 
trate. This  was  very  vexatious,  and  I  began  to  feel  a 
strange  trouble  come  over  me.  But  I  never  was  one  to 
stand  still  and  despond ;  so  plucking  up  heart,  I  plunged 
down  the  hill,  and  found  myself  in  a  valley  similar  to 
the  last,  but  with  the  disagreeable  accompaniment  of 
a  multitude  of  stones  and  pieces  of  rock  impeding  the 
path. 

"Worse  and  worse,"  said  I;  "but  rocks  or  no  rocks, 
I  must  get  homo." 

I  skirted  this  impassable  way  to  the  right  for  about  a 
mile,  till  I  came  to  a  point  which  presented  a  favourable 
opening.  I  still  kept,  or  thought  I  kept,  the  right  di- 
rection ;  I  followed  it,  therefore,  leading  my  horse,  and 


My  Horse  Becomes  Lame.         203 

getting  over  the  occasional  rocky  parts  as  well  as  I  could. 
I  had  now  another  hill  to  cross,  but  free,  to  my  great 
joy,  from  stones.  I  got  on  my  horse,  for  I  was  sadly 
tired,  vexation  of  mind  increasing  the  fatigue  of  body. 

I  had  not  proceeded  many  steps  when  I  found  one  of 
the  horse's  legs  failing  him,  and  presently,  setting  his  foot 
on  the  sharp  top  of  a  projecting  stone,  his  leg  bent  under 
him,  and  he  stumbled,  and  almost  fell  down.  I  was  off" 
in  a  moment,  and  with  his  foot  in  my  hand.  The  mis- 
chief was  plain ;  he  had  cast  a  shoe  !  I  remember  to 
this  day  the  odd  pang  that  shot  through  me  as  I  contem- 
plated this  disaster.  My  difficulty  was  great  enough 
with  the  aid  of  a  horse,  but  without  it,  it  was  an  awk- 
ward one  indeed.  Nay ;  it  was  worse  than  being  without 
one,  for  I  now  had  to  lead  a  lame  horse  up  hill  and 
down  hill,  to  my  great  fatigue  and  encumbrance.  I  held 
bis  foot  in  my  hand  for  some  time,  I  do  believe  for  more 
than  a  minute  or  two,  gazing  at  it,  as  if  by  looking  and 
looking  I  could  remedy  the  loss. 

When  I  put  down  his  leg,  I  stood  for  some  time  with 
my  hand  on  his  shoulder,  and  in  a  manner  stupefied  by 
the  disaster.  He  was  dead  lame.  I  tried  to  lead  him 
on,  but  it  was  with  great  difficulty  that  I  could  pull  him 
after  me.  It  then  struck  me  that  I  might  find  his  shoe 
by  searching  for  it,  and  that  by  some  means  I  should  be 
able  to  put  it  on  again,  so  as  to  answer  as  a  temporary 
shift.  Leaving  the  poor  horse  standing  still,  with  his 
near  foreleg  bent  listlessly,  I  tried  to  track  the  way  by 
which  we  had  come;  but  this  I  found  no  easy  matter, 
and  it  consumed  a  great  deal  of  time.  I  succeeded, 
however,  in  finding  the  shoe,  which  had  been  torn  off' 
among  the  rocks  over  which  we  had  recently  passed. 


204  A  Lonely  Night. 

The  recovery  of  the  shoe  quite  lightened  my  heart,  and 
I  strode  back  to  the  horse  with  some  glee,  with  my  trea- 
sure. It  was  in  vain,  however,  that  I  tried  every  ima- 
ginable scheme  to  replace  the  shoe.  I  tried  to  bind  it 
on  with  my  handkerchief,  but  that  was  an  idle  attempt. 
So  there  I  was  with  a  lame  horse  in  a  dead  fix. 

In  the  meantime  the  shades  of  evening  began  to  close 
in  upon  me,  and  I  felt  weary  and  hungry.  Having  no 
fear  of  the  horse's  straying  suddenly,  I  took  off  his  sad- 
dle and  bridle,  and  fiistened  the  holster  pistols  round  my 
waist  with  my  handkerchief.  He  presently  began  to 
feed,  and  that  pleased  me.  But  what  was  I  to  do  ?  To 
drag  him  after  me  in  his  lame  state  was  an  impossible 
task,  and  I  could  not  at  once  make  up  my  mind  to  leave 
him.  "  At  any  rate,"  I  thought,  "  I  will  try  the  chance 
of  a  night's  rest;  that  may  restore  him  sufficiently, 
perhaps,  to  take  me  home." 

So  I  set  about  establishing  myself  for  the  night,  and 
as  I  was  used  to  bush  expeditions,  I  soon  made  myself 
tolerably  comfortable.  There  was  the  kangaroo  rug  for 
my  bed  and  covering,  and  the  saddle  for  a  pillow,  and 
that  was  luxurious  accommodation  for  the  bush.  I 
wished  to  go  after  a  kangaroo,  but  I  was  too  tired,  and 
it  was  getting  too  dark  for  that  sport. 

I  looked  for  water,  and  fortunately  found  a  little 
spring  running  over  a  shelving  rock  at  no  great  distance. 
I  took  a  good  drink  of  it,  and  then  tried  to  get  the 
horse  to  it,  but  it  would  have  been  too  long  a  job ;  so  I 
filled  my  hat,  and  by  that  means  contrived  to  give  him 
a  drink  too.  I  then  kindled  a  fire,  by  flashing  some 
loose  powder  in  the  pan  of  one  of  the  pistols,  and  lighted 
a  piece  of  charred  punk,  which  is  as  good  for  the  pur- 


Awakened  by  the  Cold.         205 

pose  as  the  German  tinder  wliifli  has  been  brought  to 
the  colony  by  some  settlers.  Sitting  down  by  my  fire,  I 
proceeded  to  eat  my  supper  in  great  state,  the  kangaroo 
rug  forming  a  comfortable  carpet,  and  the  saddle  a  rest- 
ing-place for  my  elbow. 

The  fire  burned  briskly  and  cheerfully,  and  I  discussed 
a  huge  piece  of  damper  with  considerable  relish.  As  I 
did  not  expect  to  be  out  in  the  bush  another  night,  I 
was  rather  lavish  with  my  provision,  and  Hector  and 
Fly  came  in  for  a  more  than  liberal  share  of  the  supper. 
I  confess  I  felt  as  if  I  wanted  something  more,  and  I 
was  vexed  to  lose  a  night,  and  to  have  to  pass  it  in  the 
bush  unnecessarily ;  but  there  was  no  help"  for  it,  so  I 
prepared  myself  for  a  sleep. 

With  my  pistols  in  my  belt,  and  my  fowling-piece 
alongside  of  me,  I  rolled  myself  up  in  the  kangaroo 
rug,  my  feet  towards  the  fire,  and  my  head  resting  on 
the  saddle  for  a  pillow.  Hector  nestled  himself  close  to 
my  head,  and  feeling  secure  against  any  sudden  surprise 
with  my  faithful  dog  watching  me,  overpowered  with 
fatigue  I  soon  fell  asleep. 

I  slept  for  some  hours,  and  was  awakened  by  the  cold 
air  of  the  early  morning.  The  sharpest  time  of  the 
twenty-four  hours  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  is  just  before 
sunrise,  and  as  it  was  now  the  beginning  of  winter,  I 
felt  the  frosty  air  very  disagreeable.  It  was  still  dark, 
and  the  fire  was  quite  out.  Not  liking  to  stumble  about 
in  the  dark  after  fire-wood,  and  expecting  that  the  morn- 
ing would  break  in  about  an  hour  or  so,  I  unrolled  my- 
self from  my  rug,  and  kept  myself  warm  by  walking, 
taking  short  seaman's  turns  backwards  and  forwards. 

The  time  seemed  very  long  before  daylight  came,  but 


206     Take  a  Farev/ell  op  My  Horse. 

as  the  longest  night  must  at  List  come  to  an  end,  so  did 
,nis,  and  my  sight  -vras  gladdened  by  the  coming  light, 
but  the  morning  was  very  foggy.  From  this  foggy  state 
of  the  atmosphere  I  was  inclined  to  suspect  that  I  was 
in  the  vicinity  of  some  lake,  but  how  I  could  have 
wandered  back  to  the  Great  Lake,  if  I  had  done  so,  it 
puzzled  me  to  make  out.  The  hazy  state  of  the 
weather,  however,  was  a  serious  evil,  as  it  prevented  me 
from  seeing  the  sun,  and  deprived  me  of  that  guide  to 
my  course. 

When  it  was  light  enough,  I  looked  eagerly  round  for 
the  horse,  and  saw  him  close  to  the  spot  where  I  had 
left  him  the  previous  night.  I  went  up  to  him  and 
examined  him ;  he  was  in  a  pitiable  condition  indeed ; 
his  foot  was  swelled  frightfully,  and  it  was  plain  that  it 
was  quite  out  of  the  question  to  hope  that  he  could 
carry  me,  for  he  could  not  even  carry  himself  beyond  a 
few  steps  on  his  three  tottering  legs. 

Well,  this  was  a  bad  job;  but  I  had  my  own  legs  to 
carry  me,  and  they  had  never  failed  me  yet;  it  would 
take  more  time  for  me  to  get  home,  certainly,  but  I  had 
not  the  slightest  apprehension  of  being  able  to  reach 
it.  So,  as  there  was  no  help  for  it,  I  was  obliged  to 
abandon  the  poor  horse  to  his  fate ;  his  saddle  and  bridle 
I  placed  under  a  shelving  rock,  and  I  marked  the  place 
in  my  mind  by  taking  various  bearings,  so  that  I  might 
know  it  again. 

Having  done  this,  and  having  patted  the  horse  as  a 
sort  of  farewell — the  creature  seemed  to  look  beseech- 
ingly at  me  not  to  leave  him — I  set  about  considering 
the  direction  in  which  I  should  proceed-  I  felt  rather 
sharp-set,  the  damper  having  become  digested  with  pro- 


Travel  without  Breakfast.       207 

volving  rapidity,  but  as  I  bad  nothing  to  eat,  I  -was 
obliged  to  do  (I  used  to  say  to  my  boys)  as  the  King 
of  Prussia  did  when  he  had  no  bread — I  went  without 

I  decided  on  the  direction  at  once,  my  mind  being  still 
clear,  and  I  tramped  on  lustily  up  hill  and  down  dale  for 
about  ten  miles,  when  I  found  myself  becoming  tired, 
and  still  embosomed,  to  my  great  perplexity,  in  the  midst 
of  these  eternal  hills.  At  last  I  got  angry  at  my  situa- 
tion— my  head  became  confused — I  grew  distrustful  of 
myself  and  of  my  judgment,  and  I  felt  myself  rapidly 
losing  all  sense  and  power  of  deciding  on  any  direction 
as  the  right  one. 

My  head,  however,  did  not  yet  give  way ;  I  had  still 
sufficient  self-possession  to  be  aware  of  the  danger  of 
suifering  my  mind  to  lapse  into  the  perilous  state  of  fear 
and  indecision  in  the  bush,  and  I  thought  if  I  could  get 
some  food,  the  restoration  of  the  body'  s  strength  might 
help  to  keep  the  mind  in  its  equilibrium.  I  looked  out, 
therefore,  for  something  to  shoot ;  but  in  that  desolate 
place  I  could  not  spy  a  single  bird  of  any  description. 

I  thought  I  would  try  what  the  dogs  could  do.  I  looked 
narrowly  about  for  some  distance  around,  but  could  see 
no  trace  of  a  kangaroo.  I  thought  I  would  try,  however, 
— so  summoning  up  my  spirits,  and  assuming  a  cheerful 
tone,  I  bid  the  dogs  "  go  hunt  I"  To  my  great  and  most 
pleasurable  surprise,  thoy  immediately  began  to  hunt  in 
circles  around  me,  till  the  widcness  of  their  range  with- 
drew them  from  my  sight.  1  flattered  myself,  by  their 
not  returning,  that  they  had  got  scent,  and  I  remained 
very  anxiously  at  the  spot  where  they  had  left  me  for 
more  than  two  hours. 

During  this  time,  a  fear  came  over  me  that  the  dogs 


20b  My  Dogs   find   Game. 

might  leave  me,  and  that  I  should  lose  the  help  of  their 
■watchfulness  and  instinct  in  the  bush ;  but  this  fear  was 
an  injustice  to  their  fidelity,  for  at  the  end  of  the  time 
they  returned  looking  sorely  jaded,  but  with  the  marks 
on  their  mouths  of  having  killed  their  game. 

My  two  hours'  rest  had  refreshed  me,  and  it  was  with 
a  joyful  and  eager  voice,  partly  prompted  by  an  exceed- 
ingly sharp  appetite,  and  partly  by  the  instinctive  de- 
light of  a  huntsman  at  success,  that  I  bid  them  "go 
show  I"  They  trotted  on,  and  I  after  them,  and  a  weary 
way  they  led  me.  Right  over  the  steepest  hills  and  down 
the  sharpest  precipices,  without  once  stopping  or  swerv- 
ing from  their  line,  they  took  me  over  seven  or  eight  miles 
of  the  severest  country  that  I  ever  travelled  over  before 
or  since.  Several  times  I  thought  I  should  have  been 
obliged  to  give  in,  but  hunger  is  a  fierce  prompter,  and 
I  knew  there  was  killed  game  at  the  end,  and  at  length 
I  reached  it. 

Even  the  dogs  were  tired ;  I  sat  down  for  a  while,  for 
I  was  dead  beat,  and  I  felt  faintish.  The  sight  of  the 
kangaroo,  however,  was  a  restorative.  I  soon  cut  him 
up,  and  gave  the  dogs  a  meal ;  and  then  I  kindled  a  fire, 
and  was  not  very  particular  about  the  cookery,  I  assure 
you.  I  cut  oif  slices  from  the  loin,  the  tenderest  part  of 
the  animal  and  the  bush-ranger's  tid-bit,  and  throwing 
them  on  tlie  glowing  embers,  ate  my  vcnsion  stakes  hot 
and  hot  without  waitin";  for  salt  or  seasoning. 

I  left  off,  because  I  could  not  eat  any  more,  and  then 
I  began  to  think,  What  was  I  to  do  ?  I  had  now  got  into 
a  part,  still  among  steep  liills,  where  I  had  lost  absolutely 
all  idea  of  which  way  I  had  come,  or  which  way  I  ought 
to  go.     I  was  besides  very  tired,  and  my  feet  and  limbs 


More  and   more  Lost.  200 

were  getting  tender  from  scrambling  over  stony  ground, 
and  over  rocks  and  precipices. 

I  felt  too  much  fatigued  to  encounter  more  wandering 
that  day,  for  the  evening  was  coming  on ; — so  I  made 
the  best  of  it.  I  missed  my  kangaroo  rug  and  saddle  for 
blanket  and  pillow,  but  I  lighted  up  a  good  fire,  and 
sometimes  lying  down,  and  sometimes  walking  about  to 
prevent  the  night  air  from  benumbing  me,  and  occasion- 
ally having  a  peg  at  the  kangaroo,  making  capital  broils, 
I  contrived  to  get  through  the  night  without  losing  my 
spirits. 

When  daylight  came  I  cut  off  from  the  kangaroo  as 
much  flesh  as  I  could  carry,  and  then  looking  out  for  the 
highest  hill  in  my  vicinity,  I  ascended  it,  and  endeavoured 
to  make  out  where  I  was,  and  which  was  my  proper 
course.  I  could  see  nothing  but  hills,  like  the  vast  and 
tumultuous  waves  of  a  troubled  sea.  The  atmosphere 
was  still  misty,  and  I  could  not,. therefore,  help  myself 
by  observing  the  position  of  the  sun.  I  tried  to  put  the 
instinct  of  the  dogs  into  exercise,  and  I  spoke  angrily  to 
Hector,  and  bid  him  "go  home." 

The  dog  crouched,  and  obeyed  reluctantly ;  when  he 
had  got  fifty  yards  or  so  I  called  him  back,  and  then 
taking  the  bearings  of  different  points  I  pursued  the  lino 
which  Hector  had  taken,  hoping  it  was  in  the  direction 
towards  home,  or  to  some  inhabited  place  to  which  the 
instinct  of  the  animal  had  prompted  him.  Cherishing 
this  hope,  I  proceeded  in  this  course  for  many  miles,  but 
over  a  dreadfully  fatiguing  country,  but  still  without  ex- 
tricating myself  from  my  embarrassing  entanglement  in 
those  perplexing  and  confusing  hills. 

It  was  now  beyond  mid-day,  and  I  sat  down  to  rest 
14 


210  Meet  with   an   Eagle. 

myself,  and,  kindling  a  fire,  dined  heartily  on  the  flesh 
of  the  kangaroo  which  I  carried  with  me,  taking  care  to 
feed  the  dogs  well,  that  hunger  might  not  tempt  them  to 
stray  from  me.  Having  so  refreshed  myself,  I  earn- 
estly bent  all  my  faculties  to  discover  whereabouts  I 
could  be,  and  which  was  the  proper  course  to  pursue.^ 
In  my  difficulty  and  anxiety,  I  thought  the  best  thing  to 
do  was  to  try  to  discover  my  own  track,  which  I  hoped 
the  tread  of  the  horse's  feet  would  leave  sufficiently  plain, 
and  so  find  my  way  back  to  the  point  from  which  I  had 
first  deviated,  when  I  sought  for  an  easier  passage  across 
the  tier,  on  leaving  the  Great  Lake. 

This  I  knew  would  be  a  tedious  journey,  but  it  seemed 
my  only  resource.  I  set  about  it,  therefore,  with  all  the 
coolness  and  vigilance  which  I  could  summon  up,  and 
choosing  a  direction  which  I  judged  would  lead  me  across 
my  own  track,  I  set  diligently  to  work.  But  all  my  ef- 
forts were  in  vain.  Each  succeeding  mile  seemed  only 
to  plunge  me  deeper  and  deeper  into  the  recesses  and 
mysteries  of  the  woods. 

At  the  close  of  day,  when  the  light  began  to  fail 
me,  I  found  myself  at  the  foot  of  a  rocky  and  scraggy 
mountain,  at  the  base  of  which  was  a  black  and  stag- 
nant-looking pool.  An  eagle  arose  from  the  margin  of 
the  water  as  I  approached,  and  slowly  soared  to  the  sum- 
mit of  the  mountain.  There  were  no  trees  near  this 
Bpot,  nothing  but  a  few  ragged  and  stunted  bushes.  It 
was  the  very  picture  of  loneliness  and  desolation.  Its 
gloomy  and  fearful  aspect  struck  a  chill  into  my  very 
soul,  and  the  coming  darkness  helped  to  fill  my  now 
weakened  mind  with  all  sorts  of  superstitious  fears. 

I  held  my  fowling-piece  in  my  hand  for  a  considerable 


Fairly   Lost   in   the   Bush.       211 

time,  with  a  vague  sort  of  apprehension  of  clanger  from 
I  knew  not  what.  At  last  I  roused  myself  up  sufficiently 
to  light  a  fire,  which  was  a  difficult  matter,  so  scanty 
was  the  fuel  in  that  barren  place.  I  contrived  to  kindle 
one,  however;  but  its  faint  light  seemed  to  multiply  my 
terrors,  and  to  aggravate  the  feeling  of  loneliness  and 
desolation  around  me. 

I  felt  that  I  was  rapidly  falling  into  that  state  of  mind 
of  which  I  had  heard,  but  which  I  had  never  experienced 
— the  confusion  of  intellect,  and  the  deprivation  of  the 
power  of  judging,  causing  the  peculiar  aberrati(m  of  mind 
which  seizes  on  those  who  feel  the  terrible  conviction  of 
being  "  lost  in  the  bush  !"  I  was  now  lost  in  the  bush  ! 
That  calamity,  however,  frightful  as  it  was — with  my 
body  enfeebled,  and  my  mind  wandering — was  not  the 
worst  evil  that  was  to  befall  me.  But  I  must  pause 
here,  and  recover  myself  before  I  attempt  to  describe  the 
horrible  fote  that  awaited  me  in  the  desolate  wild  of 
the  dismal  bush. 


Cjinptn  €ig  jittrntl;. 

Is  threatened  by  Eagles — His  sufferings — The  Magnetic  Needle — 
The  Dogs  give  notice  of  the  Natives — Their  attack — His  fight 
single-handed  with  the  Savages. 

I  SHALL  never  forget  my  sufferings  on  that  wretched 
night.  It  was  piercingly  cold,  as  the  nights  usually  are 
in  the  month  of  June  in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and  it 
was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  I  could  contrive,  by 
incessant  motion,  to  prevent  my  limbs  from  becoming 
benumbed. 

The  thoughts  of  my  family,  of  my  ruined  farm,  and  of 
the  disasters  which  seemed  to  thicken  6n  me,  with  the 
dreadful  feeling  of  my  present  state  of  helplessness, 
almost  maddened  me.  At  last,  towards  morning,  I  sat 
down  by  the  fire,  and  from  mere  exhaustion  fell  asleep. 

I  was  soon  awakened  by  the  nipping  cold  of  the  early 
morning.  My  sleep,  however,  short  as  it  was,  served  to 
calm  me.  I  began  coolly  to  reflect  on  my  position.  "  I 
certainly  was  lost  in  the  bush;  but  was  there  no  way  out 
of  the  difficulty  ?  If  I  continued  in  a  straight  line  in  any 
one  direction,  I  must  at  last  come  to  some  stream,  or 
perhaps  to  some  stock-hut,  or  to  some  known  point, 
which  would  be  the  means  of  recovering  my  way; — the  , 
great  danger  to  be  avoided  was  straying  to  the  west,  in 
which  direction  there  were  neither  settlements  nor  stock- 
3^ard  stations,  and  nothing  but  the  wild  and  untrodden 
bush  between  me  and  the  sea.  Tf  I  could  keep  an  east- 
(212) 


SrilENGTH    AND   SPIRITS   PtESTORED.    213 

waivl  coursr',  I  must  at  last  arrive  at  some  broad  frack, 
aud  certainly  at  tlie  high  road  across  the  island." 

Such  were  my  thoughts.  I  tried,  therefore,  to  observe 
the  rising  sun,  but  the  fogginess  of  the  morning  was  too 
great  to  allow  me  to  do  more  than  ascertain  the  point 
from  which  light  seemed  to  come.  That  was  some  help, 
however;  so,  summoning  up  my  strength,  and  endea- 
vouring to  preserve  the  coolness  of  mind  necessary  to  en- 
able me  to  keep  a  straight  course,  I  set  out. 

But  I  had  not  proceeded  many  miles  before  the  same 
doubt,  and  confusion,  and  indecision  of  mind,  which  I  had 
experienced  .the  day  before,  again  seized  on  me.  When  I 
perceived  this  fit  coming  on,  I  immediately  paused  and 
lighted  a  fire.  While  I  was  lighting  it,  a  kangaroo 
hopped  into  sight ;  the  dogs  pulled  it  down  in  less  than  a 
couple  of  minutes,  not  a  hundred  yards  from  the  fire. 
This  I  looked  on  as  a  good  omen,  and  it  reassured  me. 
I  made  a  good  bush  meal,  and  felt  my  strength  some- 
what restored. 

It  was  now  past  mid-day,  and  I  again  .set  myself  earn- 
estly to  consider  the  right  direction.  There  was  a  bar- 
ren hill  to  my  right,  very  steep,  aud  without  trees  to  ob- 
struct the  view.  I  determined  to  climb  up  it,  in  order 
to  get  a  better  prospect  of  the  country  around,  and  with 
that  view  I  looked  about  for  a  stick  to  use  as  a  walking- 
staff.  I  soon  found  a  young  sapling  fit  for  my  purpose, 
and  having  provided  myself  with  this  help,  I  buckled  my 
gun  behind  me,  that  my  hands  might  be  at  liberty.  [ 
then  climbed,  with  a  good  deal  of  scrambling,  to  the  top 
of  the  hill. 

Having  gained  the  top,  I  proceeded  to  examine  the 
country  around  me  very  carefully,  hoping  that  I  might 


214  Attacked  by  Eagles. 

catch  sight  of  some  point,  or  high  hill,  or  particular  tree, 
by  which  I  might  learn  my  present  position. 

I  was  anxiously  engaged  in  this  manner,  and  quite  ab- 
sorbed by  my  anxious  survey,  when  suddenly  there  was 
an  obscuring  of  the  light  above  my  head.  I  raised  up  my 
eyes  to  ascertain  the  cause  of  it,  when,  to  my  exceeding 
terror,  I  beheld  one  of  the  largest  of  the  eagles  of  those 
regions  poising  itself  on  its  wings  not  twenty  yards 
above  my  head,  and  in  the  attitude  of  pouncing  down 
on  me. 

I  had  more  than  once  witnessed  the  attack  of  an  eagle 
on  a  sheep,  which  is  by  fixing  its  claws  on.  the  body  of 
the  animal,  and  digging  out  its  eyes  with  its  beak;  the 
sheep  then  becomes  an  easy  prey.  The  thought  of  this 
horrible  fate  made  me  instantly  put  my  hands  over  my 
eyes,  so  imminent  was  the  danger,  and  so  great  was  my 
fright.  I  fancied  I  heard  the  flapping  of  the  creature's 
wings,  and  in  a  sort  of  despair  I  whirled  the  stick  which 
I  held  in  my  hand  over  my  head  to  ward  oif  the  expected 
attack. 

Looking  up  at  the  same  moment,  I  perceived  a  second 
eagle  who  had  joined  the  first,  and  they  now  flew  in  rapid 
circles  just  above  me.  I  guessed  at  once  that  I  had  ap- 
proached the  spot  where  they  were  accustomed  to  build 
their  nost,  and  that  they  were  angry  at  the  intrusion.  I 
clipped  my  fowling-piece  from  my  back,  and  fired  both 
barrels,  first  at  one  and  then  at  the  other.  They  uttered 
a  fierce  scream,  but  did  not  leave  me. 

I  did  not  wait  any  longer,  but  ran  helter-skelter  down 
the  hill,  making  more  than  one  summerset  before  I  got 
to  the  bottom.  Luckily,  however,  my  g\in  escaped  any 
damage  in  this  scramlding  tnniblo;  nnd  although  I  felt  a 


Further   Sufferings.  215 

good  deal  bruised,  I  lost  no  time  in  reloading  it,  and  then 
I  felt  secure.  The  peril  to  which  I  had  been  exposed 
shook  me  a  great  deal,  and  I  sat  down  at  the  foot  of  the 
hill  in  a  very  disconsolate  mood,  feeling  that  my  nerve 
was  giving  away  under  the  terrors  of  being  lost  in  the 
bush,  for  at  any  other  time  I  fancy  I  should  have  been 
glad  of  the  opportunity  of  getting  such  a  good  shot  at 
an  eagle,  and  particularly  of  getting  a  sight  of  their 
haunts. 

This  thought  made  mo  very  sad ;  but  I  still  kept  up 
ray  spirits,  and  my  bodily  strength  was  not  yet  subdued. 
I  was  well  armed,  and  had  my  faithful  dogs  with  me,  and 
another  effort  might  brine;  me  to  some  known  track. 
Again,  therefore,  I  braced  myself  up  to  the  task,  and 
choosing  a  direction  which,  according  to  my  judgment, 
led  eastward,  I  determined  to  make  a  vigorous  effort.  My 
efforts,  however,  were  all  in  vain,  and  the  fourth  night 
found  me  still  an  almost  hopeless  wanderer. 

The  fifth  day  passed  in  the  same  wearisome  endeavours. 
My  strength  now  began  to  fail  me;  not  so  much,  I  think, 
fi-om  bodily  fatigue,  as  from  the  exhausting  operation  of 
anxiety  of  mind  and  uncertainty  of  direction.  Towards 
the  close  of  the  evening  I  arrived,  at  dusk,  at  the  foot  of 
a  rocky  hill.  The  dogs  were  uneasy,  and  whined  a  good 
deal,  but  I  set  it  down  to  their  sympathising  with  my  own 
appeai-ance  of  sorrow  and  dejection. 

I  had  scarcely  strength  to  raise  a  fire  and  broil  some 
of  the  flesh  of  the  kangaroo  which  I  carried  with  me.  I 
had  no  water,  and  in  the  dark  I  could  not  discover  any, 
A  sort  of  numbness  of  the  mind  had  now  come  over  me ; 
a  leaden  feeling  of  cold  despair.  In  my  strange  frenzy, 
I  fancied  I  must  have  wandered  towards  the  western  coast, 


216  Kepair  my  Clothes. 

for  I  could  not  otherwise  account  for  my  not  being  able 
to  discover  some  track  or  point  known  to  me. 

In  this  state  I  lay  down  by  the  side  of  the  fire  in  a  state 
of  complete  bodily  and  mental  exhaustion.  My  dog3 
crouched  close  to  me,  and  I  fell  asleep.  I  awoke  once  in 
the  nieht  with  a  feeling  of  cold ;  I  replenished  the  fire 
■with  some  large  fuel,  and  slept  again. 

I  must  have  slept  soundly;  for  in  spite  of  the  cold, 
and  of  the  thirst  which  was  on  me,  I  did  not  wake  till 
the  light  roused  me.  It  was  a  glorious  morning;  very 
cold,  but  the  air  was  clear  and  bright.  I  tried  to  get  up, 
but  found  my  limbs  so  benumbed  that  I  could  hardly 
move.  I  contrived,  as  I  lay  on  the  ground,  to  push  with 
with  ray  feet  the  loose  pieces  of  dead  timber  about  to 
tlie  fire,  which  was  still  faintly  burning.  Presently 
there  was  a  good  blaze,  and  the  warmth  restored  me  a 
little.  I  continued  to  heap  dead  wood  on  till  I  made  a 
complete  bonfire. 

This  exertion  and  the  heat  of  the  blaze  revived  me 
completely,  and  once  more  I  endeavoured  to  rouse  my- 
self to  the  labour  of  fresh  exploring  in  the  bush.  This 
was  the  morning  of  the  sixth  day. 

Casting  my  eyes  about  me,  I  saw,  not  far  off,  a  sort  of 
natural  basin  hollowed  out  in  a  rock,  about  a  foot  doej), 
and  as  clear  as  crystal.  Feverish  with  thirst,  I  took 
a  good  drink,  but  the  water  was  very  cold.  I  then  sat 
down  beside  it  to  consider  what  I  should  do. 

In  my  tumble  down  the  hill  I  had  torn  off  the  strap  of 
one  of  my  leather  gaiters,  and  its  looseness  was  an  an- 
noyance to  me  in  walking.  As  I  always  carried  a  house- 
wife with  inc  in  my  bush  expeditions,  I  thought  I  wouhl 
spend  a  few  minutes  in  sewing  on  the  strap  again ;  so  I 


The   Magnetic   Needle.  217 

undid  the  case,  and  placed  it  by  the  side  of  the  rocky 
basin.  I  took  out  a  needle,  and  with  my  arms  resting 
on  the  side  of  the  basin,  proceeded  to  thread  it,  when  it 
slipped  through  my  fingers  and  fell  into  the  water  be- 
neath J  but  instead  of  sinking,  it  floated  on  the  top. 

I  was  struck  with  this  circumstance,  and  admired  how 
the  needle  floated  at  the  top  of  the  water,  when  I  observed 
it  slowly  to  turn  half-way  round,  and  then  remain  sta- 
tionary. It  instantly  occurred  to  me  that  the  needle  had 
become  magnetized,  and  I  remembered  that,  some  weeks 
ago,  my  youngest  daughter  had  been  amusing  herself  with 
a  magnet  and  the  needles  in  this  case.  I  tried  it  again ; 
taking  the  needle  from  the  water,  I  rubbed  it  dry  and 
clean,  and  then  holding  it  parallel  to  the  surface  of  the 
water,  I  let  it  drop;  it  floated,  and  turned  itself  slowly 
to  the  same  point  as  before. 

I  was  full  of  joy  at  this  discovery,  as  I  now  had  the 
means  of  ascertaining  the  points  of  the  compass,  and  my 
confidence  in  myself  returned.  Without  loosing  any 
time,  I  prepared  for  another  start.  I  breakfasted  gaily 
on  some  of  the  kangaroo  steak  that  remained,  and  talk- 
ing to  my  dogs,  proceeded  on  my  way.  I  had  not  gone 
far,  however,  when  I  perceived  by  the  dogs'  significant 
signs  that  there  was  something  in  the  wind.  It  was  not 
a  kangaroo,  that  was  certain ;  but  I  flattered  myself  that 
we  were  approaching  some  human  habitation,  and  that 
the  sagacity  of  the  hound  had  detected  its  vicinity.  I 
spoke  to  him,  therefore,  and  encouraged  him  to  look 
about  him,  but  the  dog  exhibited  a  strange  reluctance 
to  leave  me,  and  presently  began  to  whine  in  the  man- 
ner which  I  knew  indicated  his  scent  of  the  natives. 

Broken  down   as  1   was  with  excessive  fatigue  and 


218    Hector  Discovers  NativesI 

anxiety,  I  confess  that  this  apprehension  almost  over- 
powered me ;  a  tremulous  fear  possessed  me  ;  my  limbs 
for  a  while  refused  to  move ;  my  sight  became  clouded, 
and  a  cold  sweat  came  over  me.  This  was  my  sixth  day 
of  wandering  and  privation  in  the  bush,  and  where  I 
was,  or  how  far  from  home,  was  unknown  to  m^.  I  sat 
down  on  the  log  of  a  tree,  and  tried  to  rally  my  fleeting 
spirits.  I  thought  of  my  wife,  of  my  children — of  my 
home,  or  rather  the  spot  where  my  home  once  was — and 
made  a  powerful  effort  to  recover  my  coolness  of  mind, 
and  to  summon  up  my  courage.  ''  After  all,  it  might 
not  be  the  natives ;  the  dog  might  be  mistaken,  or  they 
might  have  passed  away." 

I  tried  to  delude  myself  with  these  hopes,  but  a  glance 
at  the  dog  was  sufficient  to  convince  me  that  the  natives 
were  near.  Hector  was  v-ry  uneasy;  he  whined,  and 
licked  my  face,  and  exhibited  signs  of  fear  too  ex- 
pressive to  be  mistaken. 

With  this  horrible  conviction  on  my  mind  that  a 
deadly  struggle  for  life  must  soon  take  place,  the  very 
extremity  of  my  danger,  and  the  force  of  my  fear 
caused  a  reaction  in  my  frame.  I  nerved  myself  up 
with  a  sort  of  terrible  despair.  I  looked  around,  but 
as  yet  saw  no  signs  of  my  dreaded  enemies. 

I  examined  the  two  barrels  of  my  fowling-piece,  and 
assured  myself  that  the  charges  in  them  and  in  my  pistols 
were  unshaken.  I  carefully  inspected  the  pans,  probed 
all  the  touch-holes,  and  felt  that  the  flints  were  firmly 
fixed  and  clean,  and  dry  at  their  edges.  Then  I  looked 
at  my  powder-horn,  and  calculated  how  many  charges  it 
would  supply  to  me.  I  had  a  little  bag  of  bullets  with 
me;  these  I  placed  loo^e  in  a  convoniont  pocket. 


Find   My   Broadsword.  219 

All  the  while  I  was  searching  the  bush  with  my  eyes 
oa  every  side.  No  signs  of  the  natives !  I  began  to 
indulge  in  the  hope  that  after  all  it  was  a  false  alarm, 
and  again  I  proceeded  on  ray  way,  but  slowly  and  warily. 
I  had  gone  about  two  miles,  when  I  came  to  a  spot  which 
I  thought  was  familiar  to  me.  Looking  about,  I  recog- 
nised the  place  where  I  had  stopped  five  nights  before 
with  my  lame  horse;  the  horse  had  disappeared — per- 
haps strayed  away — but  I  saw  on  the  ground  my  old 
broadsword  which  I  had  left  there  as  an  encumbrance  to 
my  walking. 

Full  of  fears  of  the  natives,  I  greeted  this  weapon  as 
an  old  friend,  and  seized  on  it  eagerly.  I  felt  more  se- 
cure with  this  additional  means  of  defence,  and  drawing 
it  from  its  sheath,  which  I  cast  on  the  ground,  I  carried 
the  sword  in  my  hand.  I  had  scarcely  resumed  my  jour- 
ney, when  Hector  began  to  growl  and  whine  in  a  way 
which  put  me  on  my  guard. 

As  my  object  is  to  record  all  the  emotions  of  my  mind 
during  this  time  of  my  being  lost  in  the  bush,  and  ex- 
posed to  the  new  peril  which  I  am  describing,  I  must  not 
forget  to  tell  that  the  unexpected  recovery  of  my  broad- 
sword produced  a  strange  revolution  in  my  mind  and 
feelings.  I  recovered  from  the  extreme  depression  of 
spirits  which  had  weighed  me  down  and  deprived  me  of 
all  hope  and  courage,  and  I  now  felt  a  full  confidence  that 
I  was  a  match  for  the  natives,  and  that  I  should  be  able 
to  keep  them  at  bay. 

Perhaps  the  restoration  of  mind  caused  by  the  acci- 
dental discovery  of  the  magnetic  needle  on  the  water, 
and  the  confidence  of  the  right  direction  which  that  dis- 
covery produced,  helped  to  restore  my  coolness  and  cou- 


220  Natives  Attack  Me. 

rage.  However,  without  more  philosophising  on  that 
point,  I  will  proceed  to  describe  my  fight  with  the  na- 
tives. 

Fight  or  no  fight,  I  thought  that  the  best  thing  I  could 
do  was  to  make  progress  onwards  to  the  east  with  all  the 
speed  that  my  strength  would  allow.  I  strode  on,  there- 
fore, towards  a  gentle  acclivity,  beyond  which  there 
seemed  to  be  some  clear  ground,  as  the  light  was  strong 
beyond  it. 

I  was  in  a  valley  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  broad,  clear 
of  trees,  with  a  rise  on  each  side  of  me  thickly  wooded.  I 
ascended  the  acclivity,  and  was  cheered  with  the  prospect 
of  a  more  open  country,  and  with  a  scenery  which  seemed 
not  unknown  to  me. 

Turning  back  to  look  at  the  ground  which  I  had  passed 
over,  and  to  take  the  bearings  for  my  straight  progress,  I 
thought  I  detected  on  my  left  hand  through  the  trees, 
the  glimmering  of  a  faint  light.  I  was  quite  cool,  and 
fully  prepared  for  a  conflict,  but  as  may  be  supposed,  I 
had  no  desire  to  seek  it.  Knowing  the  importance,  how- 
ever, of  not  being  taken  unawares,  I  stood  still  for  a  few 
minutes;  but  I  saw  no  more  of  the  light. 

This  light,  I  have  no  doubt,  was  caused  by  the  two 
pieces  of  lighted  stick  which  the  natives  carry  about  with 
them  to  light  their  fire.  They  have  discovered,  by  some 
accident,  that  two  pieces  of  lighted  stick,  or  charcoal, 
crossed  and  in  contact,  will  keep  alight ;  whereas  a  single 
piece  would  soon  become  extinguished.  The  settlers  have 
borrowed  this  hint  from  the  natives. 

I  had  turned  round  to  proceed  on  my  way,  when  my 
steps  were  arrested  by  a  spear  which  passed  by  me  to  the 
right,  and  stuck  in  the  ground.     "Oh,  oh  !"  thought  I, 


IKeepCool.  221 

"  the  fun  is  about  to  begin,  is  it  ?  Well,  I  have  four 
barrels  for  you,  my  beauties;  two  long  shots  and  two 
close  ones,  besides  my  broadsword  for  a  tussle." 

I  am  surprised,  when  I  look  back,  at  my  extraordinary 
coolness ;  but  it  was  so.  I  did  not  fire,  for  I  did  not  like 
to  lose  a  shot,  but  suspending  my  broadsword  by  its 
leather  to  my  left  wrist,  I  held  my  piece  ready.  I  was 
in  a  tolerably  favourable  position,  on  the  top  of  a  low 
green  hill,  so  that  I  could  see  all  around  mc,  and  I  kept 
a  sharp  look-out,  I  can  assure  you,  for  I  did  not  know 
from  which  quarter  the  attack  might  come. 

1  again  turned  round  and  proceeded  a  few  steps,  when 
another  spear  came  close  to  me.  I  did  not  care  much  for 
their  spears  so  long  as  they  were  cast  from  a  distance,  as 
they  do  not  inflict  any  dangerous  damage  unless  they  are 
within  forty  yards  or  so;  but  this  second  spear  was  an  in- 
dication of  a  determination  to  attack  me,  and  it  showed 
that  I  was  watched,  and  that  the  natives  were  ready  to 
take  me  at  a  disadvantage. 

How  many  there  might  be  I  had  no  means  of  know- 
ing, but  I  took  it  for  granted  it  was  one  of  their  wander- 
ing mobs,  consisting  of  about  twenty  persons,  men, 
women,  and  children.  I  gazed  earnestly  in  the  direc- 
tion whence  the  spear  had  come,  but  I  could  see  nothing; 
the  trees  were  about  eighty  or  a  hundred  yards  distant 
from  me. 

While  I  was  looking,  a  native  showed  himself,  and 
running  a  little  way  towards  the  spot  where  I  stood, 
cast  a  womera  at  me.  I  had  never  witnessed  the  casting 
of  this  curious  native  weapon  in  a  hostile  manner  before, 
and  having  had  that  satisfaction,  I  certainly  have  no 


222  Disabled! 

curiosity  to  see  it  cast  in  that  manner  again.  The 
womera  would  have  struck  me  if  I  had  not  skipped  aside 
in  time,  and  as  it  was  it  was  only  by  a  hair's  breadth 
that  I  avoided  it. 

Almost  before  I  could  take  aim  at  the  native,  the 
womera,  skimming  through  the  air,  returned  to  the  spot 
from  which  the  native  had  cast  it.  I  was  unwilling  to 
€re  without  a  positive  necessity,  and  I  refrained  from 
drawing  the  trigger,  though  I  still  kept  my  piece  in  the 
position  of  taking  aim. 

The  native  picked  up  his  womera,  and  without  wait- 
ing cast  it  at  me  again.  I  saw  it  whirling  towards  me 
with  great  velocity,  and  in  an  instant  afterwards  I  felt 
myself  struck  with  considerable  violence  on  my  left  leg, 
which,  at  the  moment,  I  thought  it  had  broken.  The 
shock  brought  me  on  one  knee  to  the  ground.  The 
native  gave  a  cry  of  exultation,  and  I  immediately  fired 
at  him.  The  discharge  of  my  piece  was  a  signal  for  a 
rush  from  the  whole  body ;  about  a  dozen  of  them  sud- 
denly shot  out  from  among  the  trees,  and  with  wild  and 
terrific  shouts,  rushed  towards  me. 

Supposing  that  I  was  defenceless  after  the  discharge 
of  my  gun,  they  came  on  swiftly,  boldly  brandishing 
their  waddies  in  the  air,  with  the  intent  of  shortly  exer- 
cising them  on  my  unfortunate  skull,  I  did  not  lose 
my  presence  of  mind,  but  remaining  on  one  knee,  I  fired 
oflF  my  second  barrel,  and  hit  the  foremost  man. 

The  second  discharge  puzzled  them,  and  they  halted, 
not  knowing  what  to  make  of  a  gun  that  could  fire 
twice  without  being  loaded.  Seeing  them  hesitating,  I 
drew  one  of  my  horse-pistols,  and  treated  them  with 


A  Halt  in   t  ii  k  Attack  223 

another  shot ;  this  completed  their  dismay,  and  they  all 
scampered  off  as  fust  as  thoy  came,  behind  the  shelter 
of  the  trees. 

I  lost  no  time  in  reloading  my  three  barrels,  and  stood 
on  my  guard  again .  Hector  and  Fly  were  of  no  use  to  me ; 
they  were  afraid  of  the  naked  savages.  After  waiting 
in  my  posture  of  defence  for  some  minutes,  I  thought 
I  might  venture  to  make  a  move  away  from  them,  as  I 
had  given  them  a  taste  of  what  I  could  do;  but  on 
attempting  to  walk,  I  found  that  the  blow  of  the  womera 
had  been  so  severe,  that  it  had  almost  deprived  me  of 
the  use  of  my  leg.  I  limped  on,  however,  as  well  as  I 
could,  deeming  any  advance  homewards  a  gain. 

I  picked  up  the  womera  and  carried  it  away  with  me. 
It  was  in  the  shape  of  a  half  circle,  with  a  peculiarity 
of  make  which  must  be  seen  to  be  understood,  but  of 
the  efficiency  of  which  I  had  received  a  sharp  illustra- 
tion. 

The  natives  seeing  me  bear  away  the  womera,  which 
is  a  scarce  weapon  among  them,  and  much  prized,  and 
observing  by  my  limping  that  I  was  wounded,  raised  a 
loud  cry  of  anger  and  triumph,  which  sounded  in  my 
ears  very  disagreeably,  as  it  betokened  an  inclination 
on  their  part  to  continue  a  conflict  which  I  should  have 
been  very  glad  to  avoid,  though  still  without  fear  as  to 
the  result,  if  I  could  hold  out  long  enough. 

Had  I  been  aware  that  the  fierce  and  vindictive  Syd- 
ney Black,  known  by  the  name  of  Musqueeto,  was 
among  them,  my  confidence  would  have  been  consider- 
ably abated ;  but  the  worst  was  to  come,  and  the  fight 
presently  began  to  assume  a  more  serious  air  than  I  had 
calculated  on. 


224  See  next  Chapter! 

The  terrible  extremity,  however,  which  I  have  to  tell 
of  is  of  a  nature  so  horrible  and  appalling,  that  I  can- 
not summon  up  spirits  to  enter  on  it  to  day ;  my  mind 
sickens  and  revolts  at  the  recollection  of  its  horrors. 
The  description  of  that  fearful  trial  must  form  the  subject 
of  a  separate  chapter  of  my  eventful  history. 


c;ilfl|itH  jiittHnntli. 

Takes  refuge  in  a  deserted  Hut — The  Natives  besiege  him,  and  std 
fire  to  the  Roof^llis  Escape — He  climbs  into  a  Tree — The  Ni- 
tives  set  fire  to  it — Death  seems  certain — His  Rescue. 

The  day  was  clear  and  bright,  and  though  the  early 
time  of  June  is  the  beginning  of  winter  in  Van  Dieraen's 
Land,  the  beams  of  the  sun,  which  shone  splendidly  at 
mid-day,  had  still  power  to  spread  a  feeling  of  summer 
warmth  over  the  park-like  plains.  I  shall  never  forget 
that  memorable  day  of  my  fight  with  the  natives. 
Alone — buried  in  the  wilderness  of  the  vast  woods — 
wearied  by  a  six  days'  travel  in  the  bush  in  which  I 
had  been  lost — worn  down  from  want  of  sleep,  and 
feeble  from  scanty  fare,  I  was  now  exposed  to  a  deadly 
struggle  with  a  body  of  furious  natives,  led  on  by  the 
fierce  and  malignant  Musqueeto.  I  am  amazed,  when  I 
look  back  on  the  events  of  that  fearful  day,  that  I  did 
not  sink  under  its  difficulties,  and  that  I  am  still  alive 
to  relate  the  story.     But  to  proceed. 

I  hastened  on  my  way  in  the  direction  of  the  east, 
trusting  that  by  such  a  course  I  should  come  upon  some 
gcttlemont,  or  stock-keeper's  hut,  which  would  afford  me 
a  place  of  defence,  or  at  least  on  some  track  of  man 
or  beast  on  which  I  could  rely  to  lead  me  to  human 
habitations. 

The  natives  ceased  to  molest  me  for  some  miles,  nor 
could  I  detect  any  signs  of  their  vicinity,  but  it  will 

15  (225) 


226  Take  Kefuge  in   a  Hut. 

be  seen  by  the  sequel  that  they  did  not  lose  sight  of  me. 
I  was  in  some  pain,  and  limped  a  good  deal  at  first  from 
the  effects  of  the  womera  which  had  struck  me  on  the 
leg,  but  as  I  got  warm  the  pain  left  me,  and  I  ceased  for 
a  time  to  feel  much  inconvenience  from  the  wound. 

In  this  manner  I  proceeded  some  miles,  when  my 
sight  was  gladdened  by  the  appearance  of  a  stock -keeper's 
iut,  to  which  I  eagerly  hastened.  I  looked  round  when 
I  approached  it,  but  I  saw  no  sign  of  the  natives.  When 
I  got  to  the  door  I  called  out — 

"  Hulloa  !  anybody  here  ?" 

No  answer. 

"  Is  there  any  one  inside  ?  I  have  been  lost  in  the 
bush,  and  the  natives  have  been  attacking  me.  Don't 
be  afraid  of  me ;  I  am  William  Thornley,  of  the  Clyde." 

No  reply 

I  then  knocked  loudly  at  the  door,  thinking  that  some 
one  might  be  asleep  inside,  and  not  liking  to  burst  in 
suddenly,  lest  I  should  be  mistaken  for  a  bush-ranger, 
and  fired  at;  for  the  equivocal  appearance  which  my  per- 
son had  presented  a  week  since  to  the  soldiers  had  not 
been  improved,  I  felt  aware,  by  a  six  days'  scramble  in 
the  bush ;  but  as  no  reply  was  made  to  my  repeated 
knocking  I  concluded  that  the  hut  was  empty. 

I  tried  the  latch,  therefore,  of  the  upper  half  of  the 
door  :  it  was  not  fastened ;  I  opened  it  easily,  and  looked 
in,  first  taking  a  look  behind  me,  for  fear  of  a  surprise. 
I  saw  no  signs  of  an  inhabitant ;  so  I  opened  the  lower 
half  of  the  door,  and  stepped  in.  A  view  of  the  interior 
satisfied  me  at  once  that  the  hut  had  not  been  occupied 
for  some  time.  I  was  sorry  for  this,  as  I  had  hoped  that 
I  should  meet  with  some  one  to  direct  me  on  my  way, 


Make  it  Secure.  227 

and  who  might  assist  me  in  my  defence  against  the  na- 
tives. But  on  the  whole,  I  was  pleased  with  the  dis- 
covery of  this  hut,  tenantless  as  it  was,  as  it  afforded  me, 
[  thought,  a  temporary  place  of  refuge. 

I  examined  its  capabilities  of  defence,  and  found  that  it 
consisted,  as  usual,  of  two  rooms  or  divisions,  in  the 
inner  of  which  was  a  window,  and  a  shutter  at  the  back  ; 
there  was  another  window  and  shutter  in  front  by  the 
side  of  the  door;  when  I  say  a  "window,"  I  mean  an 
opening  to  let  in  the  light  without  glass  or  window- 
frame;  when  the  door  and  shutters  were  shut,  it  was 
dark,  with  the  exception  of  the  light  which  penetrated 
through  the  crevices  of  the  logs  of  which  the  hut  was 
rudely  built. 

Without  losing  any  time,  I  set  to  work  to  render  the 
hut  as  secure  as  possible  against  the  natives,  should  they 
have  the  mind  to  follow  up  their  first  attack.  The  up- 
right logs  seemed  all  to  be  pretty  tight  set,  and  strong 
enough  to  resist  any  ordinary  violence.  The  window  at 
the  back  was  awkward,  as  it  afforded  the  facility  of  a 
back  entrance  while  I  was  engaged  in  front. 

To  render  this  point  secure,  I  pulled  down  the  par- 
tition of  split  logs  that  divided  the  two  rooms,  and  con- 
trived to  barricade  the  back  window  with  them,  so  as  to 
ensure  me  from  any  sudden  inbreak  on  that  side.  I 
then  barricaded  the  front  window  in  the  same  manner, 
and  I  put  a  split  log  against  the  lower  part  of  the  door, 
with  one  end  jammed  firmly  in  the  earthen  floor  of  the 
hut ;  the  top  part  of  the  door  I  left  to  the  security  of  the 
bolt,  intending  to  open  it  occasionally  for  the  conve- 
nience of  firing  through  its  opening. 

These  preparations  occupied  me  for  about  an  hour, 


228        My  Unpleasant   Position. 

and,  having  concluded  them,  I  felt  that  I  was  very 
hungry,  and  what  was  worse,  that  I  was  suffering  from 
thirst.  There  was  an  iron  tripod  on  the  hearth,  the 
usual  piece  of  kitchen  furniture  in  a  stock-keeper's  hut, 
and  being  heavy  and  bulky,  it  had  not  been  removed. 
It  occurred  to  me  that  the  spot  chosen  to  build  a  hut  on 
was  sure  to  be  near  to  water. 

As  the  extremity  was  pressing,  I  thought  I  might 
venture  to  get  a  drink,  so  I  clambered  over  the  lower  part 
of  the  door,  followed  by  Hector  and  Fly,  who  stuck  close 
to  me,  to  look  for  the  spring.  The  dogs  were  panting 
for  water,  so  I  left  them  to  their  instinct,  and  presently 
Fly,  after  a  little  snuffing  about,  went  straight  to  a  pool 
formed  by  a  spring,  not  twenty  yards  from  the  back  of 
the  house. 

I  first  took  a  good  drink,  which  refreshed  me  greatly, 
and  then  I  cast  about  how  to  get  a  supply  of  water  in- 
side the  hut.  The  tripod  was  too  clumsy  and  too  heavy 
to  be  taken  to  the  pool,  so  I  got  over  the  half-door,  and 
lifted  it  close  to  the  entrance ;  then  I  went  back  to  the 
pool,  and,  filling  my  hat  with  water,  ran  back  with  it, 
and  poured  it  over  the  door  into  the  tripod. 

While  I  was  repeating  this  operation,  I  was  terribly 
startled  by  Hector  suddenly  darting  off  in  the  direction 
of  the  bush.  I  thought,  to  be  sure,  that  the  natives 
were  on  me,  and,  dropping  my  hat  full  of  water,  I  scram- 
bled over  the  door  into  the  hut  again.  But  it  was  a 
false  alarm,  for  in  a  few  seconds  after  Hector  came  to 
the  door  wagging  his  tail,  with  a  kangaroo-rat  in  his 
mouth,  which  he  had  killed,  and  which  was  the  cause  of, 
his  run  into  the  bush. 

I  was  not  a  little  rejoiced  at  this  unexpected  supply, 


They  Attack  Me  in   the   IIut.      229 

for  I  was  sadly  at  a  loss  for  food.  I  was  not  lonf  in 
kindling  a  fire,  and  skinning  my  prize,  which  was  rather 
a  large  one  of  the  sort,  nearly  as  big  as  a  rabbit,  and  ex- 
cellent eating,  and  made  a  broil  of  it,  which  afforded  me 
a  delicious  repast. 

My  spirits  revived  after  this  refection,  and  I  began  to 
consider  that  I  was  perhaps  only  losing  time  by  remain- 
ing in  the  hut.  It  was  now,  as  nearly  as  I  could  judge, 
about  two  hours  past  mid-day,  and  I  had  plenty  of  day- 
light before  me  to  make  considerable  progress  before 
night.  I  had  recourse  to  my  needle  again,  and  I 
dropped  it  into  the  tripod ;  it  sunk  to  the  bottom  imme- 
diately, being  affected  by  the  iron ;  so  I  filled  my  hat 
with  water,  and  removing  it  to  a  distance  from  the  iron 
tripod,  had  the  satisfaction  of  ascertaining  the  points  of 
the  compass. 

I  prepared,  therefore,  to  leave  the  hut,  and  put  myself 
in  order  accordingly.  I  was  in  the  very  act  of  throwing 
my  leg  over  the  half-door,  when  I  was  stopped  in  my 
exit  by  a  growl  from  Hector,  who  immediately  galloped 
towards  a  thicket  of  trees  about  a  hundred  yards  or 
more  in  front  of  the  hut.  He  quickly  returned,  and  by 
his  crouching  attitude  and  peculiar  whine  I  at  once 
know  that  he  had  scented  the  natives. 

It  was  too  true ;  in  less  than  a  minute  afterwards,  a 
body  of  about  twenty  men  and  women,  headed  by  Mus- 
quoeto,  moved  rapidly  towards  the  hut. 

Being  invigorated  by  food,  refreshed  with  partial  rest, 
and  confident  in  the  power  of  my  fire-arras — appalling  as 
this  attack  appears  to  me  when  I  look  back  on  it — I  felt 
at  the  time  no  fear.  I  was  confident  in  the  security  of 
my  little  fortress,  and  for  a  moment  I  folt  a  sort  of  re- 


230  I  Shoot  Several. 

luctance  to  fire  into  the  mob  of  naked  natives — savage 
as  they  were — to  the  certain  destruction  of  some  of  them ; 
but  this  disinclination  lasted  only  for  a  moment,  for 
the  natives,  with  the  grim  Musqueeto,  whom  I  now  re- 
cognised at  their  head,  were  fast  approaching,  and  the 
feeling  of  self-preservation  regained  its  predominant 
influence. 

My  left-hand  barrel  contained  a  single  ball;  I  fired; 
a  native  fell,  but  the  others  continued  to  advance,  and 
sent  a  shower  of  spears  at  the  open  part  of  the  door ;  one 
of  them  went  through  the  lower  part  of  the  back  of  my 
left  hand,  where  it  stuck,  while  some  went  past  me  into 
the  hut,  narrowly  missing  me,  and  some  stuck  in  the 
wall  on  each  side. 

I  fired  off  my  second  barrel  loaded  with  shot,  and 
slamming  the  door  close,  bolted  it.  This  second  dis- 
charge, I  judge,  checked  their  rush;  and  fortunately, 
for  so  determined  were  they,  that  I  feel  convinced,  on 
looking  back,  they  would  otherwise  have  succeeded  in 
their  intention  of  forcing  open  the  door. 

They  now  commenced  a  furious  yelling  round  the  hut, 
and  some  of  them  tried  the  back  window,  but  they  found 
it  secure.  In  the  meantime  I  reloaded  my  fowling-piece, 
putting  a  couple  of  balls  in  each  barrel,  for  I  felt  that 
the  natives  were  in  earnest,  and  that  it  would  require  my 
utmost  efforts  to  save  my  life  from  their  furious  assault. 
I  was  standing  by  the  door  uncertain  what  to  do  next, 
when  suddenly  a  spear  was  thrust  between  the  crevice 
of  the  lower  and  the  upper  door  ;  fortunately  it  encoun- 
tered my  shot-belt,  which  it  perforated,  and  gave  me 
time  to  jump  back. 

It  seems  that  ray  movements  were  watched  from  the 


They   Fire  thk  Roof.  231 

outside  through  some  crevice,  for  immediately  on  my 
retreat,  a  rush  was  made  at  the  door ;  had  it  been  made 
on  the  upper  part,  the  savages  would  have  effected  an 
entrance;  but  the  lower  part,  having  been  secured  by  a 
log,  resisted  the  attempt,  and  placing  the  muzzle  of  my 
piece  at  the  same  crevice  through  which  the  spear  had 
been  thrust  at  me,  I  fired  first  one  barrel  and  then  the 
other  at  the  assailants.  A  horrid  yell,  that  made  the 
woods  re-echo,  proclaimed  that  my  fire  was  successful, 
and  I  could  hear  the  tramping  of  their  feet  as  they  re- 
treated to  a  distance. 

There  was  now  a  pause  for  some  time,  and  a  dead 
silence.  I  reloaded  my  piece  and  stood  on  my  guard. 
I  was  afraid  of  placing  my  eye  close  to  a  crevice,  lest  a 
spear  should  be  thrust  into  it  by  some  devil  watching 
me.  I  remained  in  this  state  of  suspense  for  some 
minutes,  which  seemed  to  me  as  many  hours,  wondering 
what  was  to  come  next.  While  I  thus  stood,  my  ears 
were  assailed  again  with  the  horrid  shouts  and  yells  of 
the  natives,  whose  rage  seemed  to  have  redoubled  at  the 
eight,  probably,  of  their  dead  companions. 

Fearing  that  the  strength  of  the  upper  part  of  the 
door  was  not  sufficient  to  stand  against  a  rush,  I  lifted 
up  a  heavy  log  that  had  formed  one  of  the  door-posts  of 
the  partition  which  I  had  broken  down,  and  placing  one 
end  of  it  against  the  door-flap  I  added  my  own  weight 
to  it,  pushing  it  down  the  door  as  firmly  as  I  could. 

But  this  sort  of  precaution  was  unnecessary.  The 
devils  had  hit  on  a  surer  and  safer  means  of  accomplish- 
ing my  destruction.  I  was  soon  made  sensible  of  thoir 
operations  by  a  smell  of  smoke,  which,  to  my  terrible 
dismay,  became  rapidly  stronger  and  stronger.     They 


232      The  Natives  fire  the  Hut. 

had  set  fire  to  the  thatch  of  the  hut.  The  smoke  in- 
creased, and  presently  the  light  of  the  flame  was  visible. 
I  now  perceived  that  the  thatch  had  been  set  on  fire 
on  all  sides,  and  as  the  smoke  and  flames  increased, 
the  rejoicing  natives  yelled  and  screamed  with  frantic 
delight. 

My  presence  of  mind  almost  forsook  me  at  this  crisis. 
Escape  seemed  impossible ;  and  I  felt  that  I  was  doomed 
to  the  most  horrible  of  deaths — that  of  being  burnt  alive  ! 

The  light  of  the  flames  increased,  and  the  smoke  in- 
side the  hut  became  almost  insufierable.  Feeling  that 
if  I  remained  where  I  was  death  was  certain,  I  deter- 
mined to  make  a  desperate  efibrt  to  escape.  There  was 
a  little  wind,  which  blew  the  smoke  in  the  direction  of 
the  back  of  the  hut ;  the  natives,  as  I  knew  by  their 
cries,  were  assembled  in  the  front. 

I  detemined  to  attempt  my  escape  by  the  back  window, 
hoping  that  the  smoke  in  that  direction  would  serve  to 
conceal  my  exit  at  the  moment  of  getting  out  of  the 
window,  when  my  position  would  be  defenceless.  I 
hastily  tore  down  my  barricade  of  logs,  and  jumped 
through  the  opening  into  the  smoke.  I  was  almost 
suifocated,-  but  with  my  gun  in  my  hand  I  dashed 
through  it. 

For  the  moment  I  was  not  perceived;  but  the  natives 
soon  got  sight  of  me,  and  a  volley  of  spears  Around  me, 
one  of  which  struck  me  in  the  back,  but  dropped  out 
again,  proclaimed  that  they  were  in  chase.  I  kept  on 
running  as  long  as  I  could  toAvards  a  tree  that  was  in  the 
middle  of  the  little  plain  over  which  I  was  passing,  in- 
tending to  make  that  my  fighting-place,  by  setting  my 
back  to  it,  and  so  to  protect  myself  in  the  rear. 


IEscapetoaTree.  ?33 

The  spears  flew  around  lue  and  near  rue,  but  1  rcachod 
the  tree,  and  instantly  turning  round  I  fired  among  the 
advancing  natives.  This  checked  them,  for  they  were 
now  becoming  afraid  of  my  formidable  weapon,  and  see- 
ing that  I  stood  resolute  and  prepared  for  them,  they  re- 
treated to  some  distance ;  but  they  continued  to  throw 
some  spears,  most  of  which  fell  short,  and  kept  up  a 
shouting  and  yelling  in  a  frightful  manner,  capering  and 
dancing  about  in  a  sort  of  frenzy — ferocious  to  get  at 
me,  but  kept  at  bay  by  my  terrible  gun. 

My  blood  was  now  up.  I  was  excited  to  a  pitch  of 
joyful  exultation  by  my  escape  from  the  burning  hut, 
and  I  felt  that  courage  of  excitement  which  almost 
prompted  me  to  rush  on  my  enemies,  and  to  bring  the 
matter  to  an  issue  by  a  bodily  conflict  with  my  broad- 
sword. But  prudence  prevailed ;  and  I  placed  my  hope 
and  my  dependence  on  my  trusty  gun,  which  had  already 
done  me  such  good  service. 

Taking  advantage  of  the  temporary  inaction  of  the 
natives,  I  felt  for  my  powder-horn  to  re-load  the  barrel 
which  I  had  discharged.  To  my  unspeakable  horror 
and  disappointment,  it  was  missing.  I  searched  every 
pocket  in  vain.  I  had  laid  it  on  the  table  in  the  hut, 
and  there  I  had  left  it.  To  recover  it  was  impossible,  as 
the  hut  was  all  in  flames,  and  while  I  gazed  on  the  burn- 
ing mass,  a  dull  report,  and  a  burst  of  sparks  from  the 
building,  made  known  to  me  that  the  powder  had  become 
ignited,  and  was  lost  to  me  for  ever. 

In  my  agony  of  mind  at  this  discovery,  my  hair  seemed 
to  bristle  up  ;  and  the  sweat  ran  down  my  forehead  and 
obscured  my  sight.  I  now  felt  that  nothing  but  a  mi- 
racle could  save  me ;  but  the  love  of  bfe  increasing  in 


234  Climb  It 

proportion  to  the  danger  of  losing  it,  I  once  more  sum- 
moned up  my  failing  energies  for  a  last  effort.  I  had 
three  barrels  loaded ;  one  in  my  fowling-piece  and  two  in 
my  pistols ;  I  had  also  my  broadsword,  but  that  would 
not  avail  me  against  their  spears. 

If  I  could  hold  out  till  night,  I  thought  I  might  be 
able  then  to  elude  my  savage  enemies,  as  the  natives  have 
a  fear  of  moving  about  at  night,  believing  that  in  the 
darkness  an  evil  spirit  roams  about,  seeking  to  do  them 
mischief,  and  who  then  has  power  over  them.  Casting 
my  eyes  upwards  to  the  branches  of  the  tree  under  which 
I  was  standing,  I  observed  that  it  was  easy  to  climb,  and 
there  appeared  to  me  indications  of  a  hollow  in  the  trunk 
between  the  principal  branches,  which  might  serve  me 
for  a  place  of  shelter  till  the  night  should  enable  me, 
under  the  cover  of  its  darkness,  to  escape  from  my 
pursuers. 

I  formed  my  plan  on  the  instant,  and  without  losing 
a  moment  I  slung  my  gun  behind  me,  and  catching  hold 
of  a  branch  within  reach,  I  clambered  up.  The  natives, 
who  were  watching  my  motions,  renewed  their  shouts 
and  yells  at  this  manoeuvre,  and  rushed  towards  the  tree 
in  a  body. 

I  scrambled  as  fast  as  I  could  to  the  fork  of  the  tree, 
and  found,  to  my  infinite  relief,  that  my  anticipation 
was  right  j  there  was  a  hollow  large  enough  to  admit  my 
whole  body,  and  effectually  to  shield  me  from  the  spears 
of  the  savages.  As  my  foot  reached  the  bottom,  it  en- 
countered some  soft  body  which  I  quickly  learned  was  an 
opossum,  the  owner  of  the  habitation,  which  asserted  its 
rights  by  a  sharp  attack  on  the  calf  of  my  leg  with  teeth 
and  claws :  I  was  not  in  a  humour  to  argue  the  matter 


Safe  for  a  Time.  235 

with  my  new  assailant,  so  with  my  thick  bush  shoes  I 
trampled  the  creature  down  into  a  jelly,  though  it  left 
its  remembrances  on  my  torn  flesh,  which  smarted  not  a 
little.  When  I  recovered  my  breath,  I  listened  to  as- 
certain the  motions  of  my  enemies  outside. 

They  had  ceased  their  yells,  and  there  was  a  dead 
silence,  so  that  I  could  hear  my  own  quick  breathing 
within  the  trunk  of  the  tree.  "  What  are  they  about?" 
thought  I.  While  I  mentally  ejaculated  this  thought,  I 
felt  an  agitation  of  the  tree,  from  which  I  guessed  that 
some  venturous  savage  was  climbing  up  to  attack  me  in 
my  retreat.  I  cautiously  raised  myself  up  to  look  around 
me,  but  the  appearance  of  my  hat  above  the  hole  was  the 
signal  for  half  a  dozen  spears,  three  of  which  passed 
through  it,  one  of  them  grazing  the  scalp  of  my  head. 
"That  plan  will  not  do,"  thought  I;  "I  must  keep 
close." 

As  I  crouched  myself  down,  I  thought  I  heard  a  breath- 
ing above  me  ;  I  looked  up  and  beheld  the  hideous  visage 
of  one  of  the  savages  glaring  ou  me  with  his  white  eye- 
balls, which  exhibited  a  ferocious  sort  of  exultation. 
He  had  a  waddy  in  his  hand,  which  he  slowly  raised  to 
give  me  a  pat  on  the  head,  thinking  that  he  had  me  quite 
safe,  like  an  opossum  in  its  hole.  "  You're  mistaken, 
my  beauty,"  thought  I ;  "  I'm  not  done  for  yet."  Draw- 
ing one  of  my  pistols  from  my  pocket,  which  was  rather 
a  matter  of  diiEculty  in  my  confined  position,  I  lired. 

The  ball  crashed  through  his  face  and  skull,  and 

I  heard  his  deiid  body  fall  heavily  to  the  ground. 

A  yell  of  fear  and  rage  arose  from  his  black  compa- 
nions. I  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity,  and  raised 
myself  up  so  as  to  look  about  me,  but  their  threatening 


236  They  Fire  the  Teee! 

spears  soon  drove  me  back  to  my  retreat.  There  was 
now  another  pause  and  a  dead  silence ;  and  I  flattered 
myself  with  the  hope  that  the  savages,  having  been  so 
frequently  baffled,  and  having  suffered  so  much  in  their 
attacks,  would  now  retire.  But  the  death  and  the 
wounds  of  their  comrades,  it  appears,  only  whetted  their 
rage  and  stimulated  them  to  fresh  endeavours;  and  the 
cunning  devices  of  that  devilish  savage,  Musqueeto,  were 
tiirned  in  a  new  and  more  fatal  direction. 

As  I  lay  in  my  retreat,  I  heard  a  sound  as  if  heavy 
materials  were  being  dragged  towards  the  tree.  I  ven- 
tured to  peep  out,  and  beheld  the  savages  busy  in  piling 
dead  wood  round  the  trunk,  with  the  intention,  as  I  im- 
mediately surmised,  of  setting  fire  to  it,  and  of  burning 
me  in  my  hole. 

My  conjectures  were  presently  verified.  I  saw  emerg- 
ing from  the  wood  one  of  their  females,  bearing  the 
lighted  fire-sticks  which  the  natives  always  carry  with 
them  in  their  journeys.  I  looked  on  these  agreeable  pre- 
parations as  a  neglected  but  not  indifferent  spectator,  the 
natives  disregarding  my  appearance  above  the  opening, 
and  waiting  with  a  sort  of  savage  patience  for  the  sure 
destruction  which  they  were  preparing  for  me. 

The  native  woman  approached  with  the  fire,  and  the 
natives  forming  a  circle  round  the  tree,  performed  a 
dance  of  death  as  a  prelude  to  my  sacrifice.  I  was 
tempted  to  fire  on  them  ;  but  I  did  not  like  to  part  with 
my  last  two  shots,  except  in  an  extremity  even  greater 
than  this. 

In  the  meantime  the  natives  continued  their  dance, 
seeming  to  enjoy  the  interval  between  me  and  death, 
like   the   epicure   who  delays  his  attack  on  the  deli- 


Timely   Arrival  of   Friends.   237 

cious  feast  before  liim,  that  be  may  the  longer  eujoy  the 
exciting  pleasure  of  anticipation.  Presently,  however, 
their  death-song  broke  out  into  loud  cries  of  fury ;  they 
applied  the  fire  to  the  faggots,  and  as  the  blaze  increased, 
they  danced  and  yelled  round  the  tree  in  a  complete  de- 
lirium of  rage  and  exultation. 

The  fire  burned  up  ! — the  smoke  ascended  !  I  already 
felt  the  horrid  sensation  of  being  stifled  by  the  thick  at- 
mosphere of  smoke  before  the  flames  encompassed  me. 
In  this  extremity  I  determined  at  least  to  inflict  some 
vengeance  on  my  savage  persecutors. 

I  scrambled  up  from  my  hiding-place,  and  crawled  as 
far  as  I  could  on  one  of  the  branches,  which  was  most 
free  from  the  sufibcating  smoke  and  heat,  and  fired  the 
remaining  barrel  of  my  fowling-piece  at  the  yelling 
wretches,  which  I  then  hurled  at  their  heads.  I  did  the 
same  with  my  remaining  pistol,  when,  to  my  amazement, 
I  heard  the  reports  of  other  guns ;  but  whether  they 
■were  the  echoes  of  my  own,  or  that  my  failing  senses 
deceived  me,  I  knew  not,  for  the  smoke  and  flame  now 
mastered  me.  Stifled  and  scorched,  I  remember  only 
falling  from  the  branch  of  the  tree,  which  was  not  high, 
to  the  ground,  when  my  senses  left  me. 

I  was  roused  from  my  trance  of  death  by  copious  de- 
luges of  water,  and  I  heard  a  voice,  which  was  familiar 
to  me,  exclaiming, — 

,"  Well,  if  this  is  not  enough  to  disgust  a  man  with 
this  horrid  country,  I  don't  know  what  he  would  have 
more.  For  years  and  years  have  I  been  preaching  to 
him  that  nothing  good  could  come  of  this  wretched  den 
of  bush-rangers  and  natives,  and  now  you  see  the  evil  is 
come  at  la^t." 


238  I  AM  Saved. 

I  opened  my  eyes  at  these  words.  It  was  the  voice  of 
Crab,  whom  Heaven  had  directed  with  a  party  of  friends 
to  this  spot  to  deliver  me.  Overcome  with  the  intensity 
of  my  emotions,  racked  with  pain,  and  sick  with  the 
very  fulness  of  joy  at  my  escape  from  death,  I  uttered  a 
piercing  and  agonizing  cry  of  mingled  pain  and  delight, 
and  fainted. 


C|iajitn    CnitntiHli. 


He  recovers  his  senses  and  finds  himself  among  Friends — Account 
of  the  Bush-rangers  at  the  Great  Lake — Moss's  extraordinary 
escape. 

It  was  some  time  before  I  recovered  from  this  fainting 
fit,  as  the  surgeon  called  it,  "  of  physical  exhaustion  and 
mental  emotion."  When  consciousness  returned,  I 
heard  around  me  the  subdued  hum  of  human  voices,  and 
for  a  moment  I  thought  that  I  was  in  the  power  of  the 
natives,  and  that  I  was  under  preparation  for  being 
roasted  at  the  fire  of  the  blazing  tree  from  which  I  had 
fallen,  scorched  and  stifled.  I  kept  my  eyes  closed  for 
a  short  space ;  presently  I  distinguished  the  voice  of  the 
magistrate  of  the  Clyde. 

"  He  seems  in  a  bad  way,  poor  fellow  !  Have  the 
devils  touched  any  vital  part  with  their  spears  ?" 

"  No,"  said  another  voice,  which  seemed  to  me  that 
of  ray  old  friend,  the  surgeon ;  "  he  has  not  received  any 
mortal  hurt  that  I  can  see,  but  he  has  had  a  sharp  rap 
on  his  left  leg  from  some  blunt  instrument  that  has  cut 
and  bruised  it  at  the  same  time ;  but  there's  no  bone 
broken." 

'<  He'll  never  come  to  any  more,"  said  some  one,  which 
seemed  strangely  to  me  like  Crab's  voice,  but  I  could 
not  imagine  how  it  could  be  his:  ''never;  that's  my 
opinion  !     Why,  he  has  been  lost  in  the  bush  for  a  week, 

(239) 


240  I   Recover   My  Sense's. 

without  anything  to  eat,  I'll  be  bound,  and  without  a 
drop  of  water,  for  there's  never  a  drop  to  be  had  in  this 
country  when  you  want  it — in  summer,  especially.  No, 
poor  gentleman !  I've  stood  by  him  for  many  a  year, 
trying  to  persuade  him  all  I  could  to  leave  this  horrid 
place.  I  always  told  him  that  something  would  happen 
at  last;  but  I  never  thought  it  would  be  so  bad  as  this. 
He  used  to  say,  poor  fellow,  while  he  was  alive,  that  I 
was  always  roasting  him ;  he  little  thought  he  would  be 
roasted  in  real  earnest !  And  there's  that  new  sample 
of  Cape  wheat  that  he  was  to  try  this  season  :  all  lost  ! 
What  could  induce  him  to  get  up  that  tree,  I  can't 
conceive." 

"  The  tumble  from  the  tree  can't  have  done  him  any 
good,"  said  the  magistrate. 

"  No ;  but  the  branch  was  not  high,  and  it  was  a  nice 
soft  bed  of  turf  for  him  to  fall  on ;  it  was  good  luck 
that  he  was  not  hit  by  our  shots  when  we  banged  at  the 
natives." 

''  He  is  a  long  time  coming  to." 

"  No,  he's  all  right.  This  is  more  exhaustion  than 
anything  else.  His  pulse  is  coming  back  now.  You 
see,  he  has  been  in  the  bush  for  six  days,  suffering  un- 
der the  sensation  of  being  lost,  and  that  wearing  of  the 
mind  is  enough  to  exhaust  the  strongest  energies.  But 
he's  coming  to  fast  now." 

"  Will  you  bleed  him  ?" 

"Oh,  no!  A  glass  of  brandy  would  do  him  more 
good  than  bleeding,  in  his  present  state." 

''  Here's  a  flask  of  brandy." 

At  the  suggestion  of  bleeding  me  I  opened  my  eyes, 
not  wishing  to  give  the  worthy  surgeon  the  trouble  of 
performing  that  operation. 


Find   Myself   a  ji  o  n  g  Friends.    241 

"By  George !"  said  Worrall,  the  constable;  "do  you 
see  how  ho  opened  his  eyes,  and  roused  up,  when  he 
heard  the  talk  about  the  brandy  ?  I  do  think  that  a 
glass  all  round  would  do  us  good !" 

"  Well,  my  boy,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  how  do  you 
find  yourself  after  your  tumble  ?" 

"  IIow  do  you  find  yourself,  master  ?"  said  the  rough 
and  honest  voice  of  Crab;  "how  do  you  find  yourself, 
now  you're  come  to  life  again  ?  I  always  told  you  how 
it  would  be;  but  you  never  would  believe  me;  and 
there's  the  farm  burnt  down,  and  all  the  home-flock  of 
merinos  the  Lord  knows  where ;  and  there's  Miss  Betsy 
taken  ill,  and  INIissus  is  but  poorly,  and  they  are  in  a 
pretty  confusion  with  one  thing  and  another ;  and  the 
blood-foal's  dead,  and  the  tame  herd  has  taken  to  the 
bush,  and  I  don't  know  what  else  to  say  to  revive  you, 
except  that  they  say  the  small-pox  is  about,  and  ruina- 
tion is  going  on  everywhere  ;  and — " 

"  Hold  your  tongue,  you  villanous  old  grumbler," 
said  the  magistrate ;  "  you  have  croaked  enough  to  make 
a  sound  man  sick.     Let  him  alone." 

My  head  was  still  confused,  and  I  was  perplexed  to 
account  for  what  I  heard  and  saw  around  me.  My 
thoughts  reverted  to  the  day  when  we  had  our  skirmish 
with  the  bush-rangers  at  the  lake,  and  for  a  few  moments 
it  seemed  to  me  that  I  was  awaking  from  a  long  sleep, 
and  had  boon  sufiering  under  the  influence  of  a  hideous 
dream.  But  the  sight  of  the  blazing  tree  quickly  re- 
called to  my  memory  the  late  terrible  scenes;  a  feeling  of 
sickness  came  over  me,  and  I  closed  my  eyes  again. 

"Give  me  your   brandy-flask,"    said    the   surgeon j 
"  here,  Thornley,  take  a  little  sip." 
16 


242         A  Drink   Refreshes   Me. 

He  put  the  bottle  to  my  lips,  and  I  drank  a  few  tea- 
cpoonsful. 

"  Is  brandy  a  good  thing  for  faintness,  doctor?"  said 
Worrall. 

"  Nothing  better ;  it's  a  capital  medicine  when  you 
know  how  to  use  it." 

"  I  feel  very  faint,  myself,"  said  "Worrall;  "  poor  Mr. 
Thornley's  condition  has  quite  overcome  me.  Could  you 
oblige  me  with  the  brandy-flask  ?     I  know  how  to  use  it." 

"  From  long  practice,  I  dare  say." 

"  Go  and  mind  your  business,  Worrall,"  said  the  ma- 
gistrate. "  You  shall  have  brandy  enough  when  you 
get  home,  for  you  have  behaved  well,  and  deserve  it,  but 
now  let  us  be  moving ; — that  is  if  the  doctor  thinks  our 
friend  can  travel." 

"  See  if  you  can  find  a  spring  hereabouts,  Worrall," 
said  the  doctor,  "  and  we  will  give  our  friend  a  refresher." 

A  pannikin  of  water  was  presently  brought  to  me,  into 
which  the  excellent  doctor  put  a  fair  proportion  of 
brandy. 

''We  must  get  him  home  somehow,"  said  he,  "and 
set  him  to  rights  when  we  get  there.  We  can't  treat 
him  as  if  he  was  comfortable  in  a  nice  sick-bed." 

I  took  the  drink  with  eagerness,  and  looking  up,  be- 
held the  face  of  our  lost  neighbour.  Moss. 

"  IIow  did  you  get  away  from  the  bush-rangers  ?" 
were  the  first  words  that  I  uttered. 

"  Oh  !"  said  Moss  ;  "we'll  tell  you  all  about  that  by- 
and-by ;  I  have  to  thank  my  friends  here  for  my  re- 
covery, and  you  among  the  rest,  not  forgetting  our  young 
friend  Beresford  ;  but  that  story  will  keep;  we'll  tell  you 
all  about  it  in  rrood  time." 


W  K   Start   for   Home.  243 

I  now  saw  that  Beresford  was  near,  but  a  little  behind 
me,  with  his  left  arm  in  a  sling.  I  reached  out  my  hand 
to  him,  and,  handing  his  gun  to  Mr.  Moss,  he  extended 
his  right  airm  to  me,  and  raised  me  up. 

"  That's  right,"  said  Worrall,  who  now  came  up  to 
us;  "  never  say  die.  We  are  all  ready,"  he  said  to  the 
magistrate,  touching  his  hat,  "  and  we  can  get  home  be- 
fore morning ;  the  night  will  be  fine,  and  we  have  day- 
light enough  to  cross  the  Big  River,  and  then  it  will  not 
be  more  than  twenty  miles  or  so  to  the  Shannon." 

"I  am  ready,"  said  I;  ''but" — and  I  tried  to  move  a 
few  steps — "  I  can't  walk  !  I  feel  as  stiff  as  if  I  ac- 
tually had  been  roasted  at  the  fire  yonder." 

"  Well,"  said  the  sugeon,  "  I'm  inclined  to  think 
you  would  not  have  taken  long  to  roast  at  that  same  fire, 
if  we  had  not  come  up  in  time  to  stop  the  cooking  of 
you  ;  but  there's  a  horse  for  you,  and  we  must  contrive 
to  carry  you  with  us." 

''  What  has  become  of  the  natives  ?"  said  I. 

"  There  are  some  of  them  lying  dead  not  far  from  us," 
said  the  magistrate ;  "  the  rest  did  not  stay  to  make  a 
fight  of  it  with  our  number.  They  arc  off  in  the  bush 
somewhere.  But  as  to  following  them  there,  you  might 
as  well  look  for  a  needle  in  a  stack  of  hay.  Besides,  we 
have  had  enough  of  it,  and  I  think  the  natives,  for  this 
once,  have  had  enough  of  it  too.  But  we  must  not 
waste  time  in  talking;  we  have  the  Big  River  to  cross 
before  dark,  so  let  us  make  a  start." 

I  was  helped  on  to  a  horse,  and  we  proceeded  as  fast 
as  we  could  to  the  banks  of  the  Big  River.  We  reached 
it  before  dark,  but  we  could  not  find  a  ford.  We  con- 
Bumed  the  remaining  daylight  in  searching  for  one  with- 


244  How   Crab  got   Here. 

out  success ;  and  it  was  resolved  at  last  that  we  should 
bivouac  on  its  banks,  and  resume  our  search  at  daylight. 
We  lighted  up  several  fires,  and  by  the  aid  of  some  loose 
branches,  and  the  bark  of  trees,  by  means  of  which  was 
made  a  breakwind,  I  shortly  began  to  feel  tolerably  com- 
fortable, to  which  some  kangaroo  steaks  and  brandy-and- 
water  not  a  little  contributed.  As  we  lay  by  the  fire,  I 
was  curious  to  learn  some  account  of  the  bush-rangers, 
who  had  escaped,  when  I  left  my  companions,  to  a  small 
island  in  the  lake,  at  no  great  distance  from  the  main 
land. 

''  Will  it  do  him  any  harm,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  to 
keep  him  awake  with  the  story?" 

*'  Oh  !  no,"  said  the  surgeon ;  "  it's  early  yet.  Go  on, 
and  then  you  will  sooner  have  done." 

''Do  you  describe  it.  Moss,"  said  the  magistrate; 
''you  saw  it  best,  and  you  can  praise  us,  and  so  relieve 
our  modesty  from  the  painful  necessity  of  praising  our- 
selves." 

"Very  well,"  said  Mr.  Moss;  "  as  I  was  only  a  spec- 
tator of  the  fight,  perhaps  I  can  best  describe  it." 

"  How  did  Crab  come  among  you  ?"  said  I. 

"  Oh !  that's  easily  told,"  said  Crab.  "  After  the 
soldiers  left  us.  Missus's  mind  misgave  her  that  they 
would  never  find  you,  and  I  entirely  agreed  with  her  on 
that  point ;  so  seeing  what  a  taking  she  was  in,  I  ofi"cred 
to  go  for  you  and  bring  you  back,  that  is,  if  the  natives 
left  any  of  you,  for  I  told  Missus  they  were  terrible, 
voracious  cannibals.  It  seems,  however,  that  the  soldiers 
did  find  you,  or  rather  that  you  found  them,  and  by  all 
accounts  you  had  no  reason  to  bo  over-pleased  with  their 
treatment  of  you." 


Crab's   Search   for   31  e  .  245 

"  Say  nothing  about  it,"  said  I,  rubbing  myself  be- 
hind ;  "  there  was  a  mistake." 

"Was  there  ?  And  is  it  true  that  they  touched  you 
up,  and  made  you  dance  ?  Lord  !  how  they  did  laugh 
when  they  told  me  of  it !  they  said" 

"  Say  nothing  more  about  it;  I  don't  want  to  be  re- 
minded about  that." 

''  Well,  a  corporal's  party  came  up  from  camp  next 
morning  to  stay  at  the  Clyde  as  a  post  of  observation,  so 
I  left  Missuri  quite  safe  and  comfortable,  o>Jy  that  every- 
thing she  had  was  burned,  and  the  whole  family  was  in 
distress  and  confusion;  and  I  promised  her,  if  you  were 
killed  by  the  bush-rangers,  which  I  told  her  I  had  no 
doubt  you  was,  for  it's  always  best  to  know  the  worst, 
that  I  would  bring  home  your  dead  body  for  her  to  bury, 
which  would  be  a  great  consolation  to  her,  poor  lady,  I 
dare  say.  So  I  and  Bob  set  out  on  your  tracks,  and  we 
reached  the  lake  the  very  morning  you  left  it  for  the 
Clyde.  And  how  it  was  that  we  missed  you  I  can't  un- 
derstand, except  that  nobody  can  ever  find  his  way  in 
this  wild  country  when  he's  once  lost." 

"I  see,"  said  I,  "  I  thought  to  take  a  shortcut  to  the 
right,  and  so  I  missed  you." 

"That's  always  the  case,"  said  Crab,  "in  this  mise- 
rable place;  nothing  did  ever  go  right  in  it,  nor  ever 
will.  But  I'm  getting  old  now — the  more  fool  I  for 
stopping  in  it  so  long.  But  it  won't  be  long  before  I'm 
out  of  it ;  this  last  business  has  been  a  sickener." 

"You're  one  of  Job's  comforters,  Crab,"  said  1; 
"  but  now  pray  don't  interrupt  Mr.  Moss  in  his  story." 


246  Mr.   Moss'Account. 

the  capture  of  the  bush-rangers. 
When  the  fight  in  which  you  were  engaged,  (said  Mr. 
Moss,)  was  ended,  the  bush-rangers  retired  behind  the 
green  bank  by  the  margin  of  the  lake.  They  lay 
close  all  night,  but  they  sent  out  scouts  to  see  what  you 
were  about,  and  when  one  of  them  came  back  to  warn 
them  of  the  arrival  of  the  soldiers,  they  were  in  a  great 
fright,  not  knowing  what  to  do.  Some  of  them  proposed 
to  make  a  dash  through  your  party,  but  that  was  thought 
too  rash  ;  one  or  two  who  were  wounded  hinted  the  pru- 
dence of  surrender,  but  the  Gypsey,  as  they  called  him, 
who  acted  as  their  leader,  threatened  to  blow  out  any 
man's  brains  who  proposed  a  surrender. 

'' Better  be  shot,"  he  said,  "  like  men,  than  be  hanged 
like  dogs." 

Two  of  the  bush-rangers  had  been  seafaring  men,  and 
they  proposed  that  we  should  swim  over  to  the  little 
island  that  was  not  more  than  some  few  hundred  yards  from 
the  shore. 

"  And  what's  to  become  of  our  arms  and  of  the 
wounded?"  said  the  Gypsey. 

"Oh  !"  said  they,  ''make  a  little  raft,  and  put  our 
arms  and  clothes  on  the  top  of  it,  and  then  swim  and 
push  it  over ;  there's  no  tide,  and  the  lake  is  as  smooth 
as  glass." 

"A  capital  plan,"  said  the  Gypsey;  "we'll  do  it, — 
and  then  we  can  defy  the  murdering  villains  that  are  after 
us ;  for  if  they  attempt  to  get  at  us,  we  shall  have  all  the 
advantage  of  firing  at  them  under  cover." 

The  bush-rangers  were  not  long  in  putting  this  scheme 
in  execution.     All  the  time  you  were  watched  by  two 


Rangers  Swim  to  the  Island.    247 

scouts,  and  they  saw  you  sitting  by  your  fire  and  enjoying 
yourselves ;  but  it  was  not  their  game  to  excite  your  at- 
tention. The  rogues  worked  hard,  and  by  launching 
some  dry  logs  into  the  lake,  which  they  lashed  together 
with  bullock-hide,  they  soon  made  a  sufficient  raft  for  that 
purpose. 

"  Now,"  said  the  Gypsey,  "  are  you  all  ready  ?  But 
I  forgot — can  you  all  swim  ?" 

Three  of  them,  who  had  been  mechanics  of  some  sort, 
declared  they  could  not  swim  a  stroke. 

''  Here's  a  mess  !  Well,  I  tell  you  what  you  must  do, 
my  fine  fellows ;  you  must  hold  on  in  the  water  by  the 
raft — that  will  keep  you  from  sinking.  But  what  shall 
we  do  with  our  prisoner?" 

''  Oh,  let  him  go — he'll  only  be  in  the  way  ?" 

"  No,  no,  we'll  keep  him,  we  may  find  a  use  for  him 
yet.     Now,  sir,  can  you  swim?" 

'^No,"  said  I — for  the  thought  struck  me  of  a  strata- 
gem to  escape — "  and  I  hope  you  will  not  expose  me  to 
the  risk  of  being  drowned." 

''  Oh,  you  must  take  your  chance ;  it's  no  worse  to  be 
drowned  than  to  be  hanged ;  so  strip,  Mister,  and  bundle 
into  the  water.'' 

I  took  off  my  clothes,  and  the  scouts  having  been 
withdrawn,  and  the  whole  party  collected,  we  advanced 
towards  the  water. 

"  Stop,"  said  one  of  the  sailors  ;  "how  much  line  can 
we  make  by  putting  it  all  together  ?" 

By  a  general  contribution  of  neckcloths,  garters, 
cords,  and  bullock-hide,  they  made  a  line  of  about  a 
hundred  and  fifty  yards  in  length. 

"What's  this  for?"  said  the  Gypsey. 


248        Moss  EscAPESFROM  Them. 

"  You'll  see  tlie  use  of  it  presently,"  said  the  sailor. 
"  Now  for  it ;"  and  we  all  got  into  the  water. 

"  Where's  the  prisoner?"  said  the  Gypsey. 

"Alongside  me,"  said  the  other  sailor;  "  he's  all  safe." 

In  this  manner  the  swimmers  slowly  and  with  great 
difficulty  pushed  forward  the  raft,  those  who  could  not 
swim,  and  I,  pretending  not  to  be  able  to  swim,  holding 
on.  They  had  reached  the  middle  of  the  passage,  or  a 
little  more,  when  the  sailor  to  the  right  said  to  the  one 
by  me, 

"  Mate,  take  the  end  of  the  line  and  swim  to  the  shore, 
I  think  it  will  reach  it  now,  and  then  haul  on  gently, 
and  that  will  quicken  our  work  and  lighten  it  too,  for  it's 
getting  more  than  we  can  do.  Be  alive,  for  this  is  too 
hard  work  to  last  long." 

My  near  companion  quitted  me  with  much  alacrity, 
glad  to  be  relieved  from  his  share  of  the  toil  of  propel- 
ling the  clumsy  wood-work,  and  shortly  afterward  I  felt 
that  the  raft  was  being  hauled  in  from  the  shore. 

The  attention  of  the  bush-rangers  around  being  dis- 
tracted from  me  by  this  circumstance,  I  took  advantage 
of  the  opportunity,  and  quietly  dropped  under  water,  for 
I  had  been  taught  to  swim,  as  a  necessary  part  of  my 
education,  in  early  youth ;  and  I  was  as  confident  in  the 
water,  so  long  as  my  strength  lasted,  as  on  dry  land. 

On  this  occasion  I  had  need  of  all  my  skill.  My 
limbs  were  torpid  and  benumbed  from  inaction  in  the 
water,  and  by  the  exposure  of  my  hands  and  arms  to  the 
cold  night  air.  I  may  add,  that  all  the  bush-rangers 
complained  of  the  piercing  coldness  of  the  lake-water, 
and  there  was  a  terrible  chattering  of  teeth  among  the 
holders-on  before  I  left  them. 


He  is  Almost   Frozen.  249 

Well — I  dropped  quietly  uuder  water,  taking  care  to 
keep  my  head,  as  I  thought,  towards  the  shore  of  the 
main  land;  and  although  my  limbs  were  almost  para^ 
lysed  by  the  cold,  I  contrived  by  a  vigorous  eflfort  to 
strike  out  for  nearly  half  a  minute  under  water, 
there's  no  knowing  what  a  man  can  do  till  his  life  is  at 
'  stake — and  when  I  came  to  the  surface,  I  had  the  satis- 
faction to  find  that  I  was  at  a  fair  distance  from  the  raft. 

I  swam  on  lustily,  but  in  my  hurry,  and,  I  suppose, 
anxiety  and  confusion  of  mind,  instead  of  swimming  to- 
wards the  main  land,  I  swam  towards  another  island, 
which  in  the  darkness  I  mistook  for  it.  This  island  was 
nearly  a  mile  from  the  spot  that  I  quitted,  and  being  de- 
ceived as  to  its  distance,  I  expected  to  reach  it  Avithout 
much  effort,  and  I  nearly  exhausted  myself  by  quick 
swimming  before  I  was  much  more  than  half-way  over. 

Fortunately,  there  was  not  a  breath  of  air  stirring,  and 
the  water  was  quite  smooth,  but  bitterly  cold.  I  rested 
in  the  water  for  some  seconds,  but  the  cold  was  so  pierc- 
ing that  I  was  afraid  of  cramp  ;  so  I  struck  out  again  and 
worked  hard.  I  reached  the  shore  of  the  island  at  last, 
but  I  was  so  completely  exhausted  that  I  could  scarcely 
stand.  The  morning  now  began  to  break,  and  I  per- 
ceived that  I  was  about  half  a  mile  from  a  low  point 
of  land  which  ran  out  from  the  main  shore  into  the  lake. 

I  was  too  tired  to  venture  into  the  water  again,  and  I 
assure  you  that  my  situation  was  a  very  awkward  one, 
indeed.  I  kept  running  up  and  down  for  some  time  to 
keep  myself  warm,  and  at  last  I  thought  I  might  as  well 
be  drowned  as  die  of  cold  where  I  was,  so  I  plunged  in- 
to the  water  again,  and  made  an  effort  to  reach  the  op- 
posite shore. 


250  Rejoins   His   Party. 

I  had  got  little  more  than  half-way  across,  when  my 
strength  failed  me,  and  I  began  to  sink  slowly  into  the 
water.  I  gave  myself  up  for  lost,  and  I  began  to  utter 
that  which  I  considered  my  last  prayer,  when  I  felt  my 
foot  strike  against  the  ground ;  the  water  reached  to  my 
chin,  and  I  was  just  saved.  I  cautiously  waded  on,  fearing 
to  fall  into  some  hole  every  moment ;  but  the  water  grew 
shallower  and  shallower,  and  the  sand  beneath  my  feet 
was  firm  and  even,  and  I  arrived  at  the  dry  land. 

\Yithout  losing  a  moment,  I  set  oif  to  the  point  where 
I  expected  to  find  my  friends;  I  met  them  on  their 
way  to  the  concealed  boat.  They  were  much  astonished, 
as  you  may  suppose,  at  the  sight  of  a  creature  that  evi- 
dently was  not  a  kangaroo,  but  that  was  similarly  unen- 
cumbered by  any  article  of  dress.  But  matters  were  soon 
explained,  and  they  had  a  fine  laugh  at  the  joke,  when 
I  told  them  how  I  had  escaped.  There  was  a  friendly 
subscription  of  articles  of  apparel,  to  which  the  slain 
bush-rangers  were  made  to  contribute  more  efficiently. 

"Well — and  did  you  find  the  boat?" 

We  found  the  boat  in  pretty  good  condition,  with  a 
couple  of  sculls  in  her.  We  soon  launched  her,  and  then 
it  was  debated  what  should  be  our  mode  of  attack. 
The  old  sergeant — what  a  grim  old  fellow  he  is  I — pro- 
posed that  we  should  attack  them  on  three  sides  at  once, 
and  make  two  rafts  to  assist  us. 

"  If  we  go  all  together  in  a  huddle  in  this  little 
boat,"  said  he,  "  they  will  fire  at  us  in  a  heap,  and  we 
shall  have  no  chance,  at  least  not  without  great  loss,  and 
that  we  should  endeavour  to  avoid;  whereas,  by  firing 
from  three  points  at  once,  wo  shall  distract  their  atten- 
tion, and  those  in  the  boat  may  dash  in  and  charge  them. 


They  Plan  the  Attack.    251 

Of  course,  we  soldiers  will  go  in  the  boat;  it  will  just 
hold  us  aud  no  more." 

"  I  don't  like  your  lives  to  be  risked  even  in  this  way," 
said  the  magistrate.  "  I  think  the  safer  plan  will  be  to 
starve  them  out.  We  gain  nothing  by  exposing  our 
lives  unnecessarily  in  a  conflict  with  hardened  felons  and 
murderers  :  they  can  do  no  harm  where  they  are,  and 
they  must  be  starved  out  at  last.  We  can  keep  a  strict 
watch  on  them  by  the  aid  of  our  boat,  and  my  opinion  is, 
some  of  them  will  get  tired  of  being  starved,  and  will 
betray  the  rest." 

"Just  as  you  please,  sir,"  said  the  sergeant;  "it's  all 
one  to  us ;  but  I  should  like  to  make  a  dash  at  'em,  the 
cowardly  scoundrels,  to  murder  a  soldier  in  cold  blood, 
and  fire  at  his  back  !  But  if  these  rascals  were  to  put 
another  dodge  on  us,  and  steal  off  while  we  are  looking 
on,  there  would  be  a  fine  laugh  against  us  when  we  got 
back  to  Camp.  We  don't  mind  doing  it  alone,  rather 
than  not  do  it  at  all — what  do  you  say,  my  men;  shall  we 
try  the  boat  ?" 

"Ay,  ay,"  said  the  men  ;  "  we  can  fii-e  close,  and  they 
can  never  stand  it ;  besides,  we  can  fire  three  times  to 
their  one,  as  they  have  to  load  from  their  powder-horns, 
while  we  have  our  cartridges.  Better  have  it  over  at  once, 
and  rap  at  them  while  we  can." 

"  Well,"  said  the  magistrate,  ''  I  have  my  doubts; 
but  it  certainly  is  of  importance  to  secure  these  despe- 
rate fellows,  and  it  would  not  be  pleasant  to  have  the 
laugh  against  us  if  they  escape ;  so  let  us  set  about  it 
without  losing  time." 

We  all  set  to  work,  and  we  were  busy  constructing 
our  raft,  when  Crab  and  your  man  appeared  on  horseback. 


252  First  Attack  Fails. 

"  Yes,"  said  Crab,  "  we  tracked  you  to  the  place  where 
you  had  the  first  fight,  and  then  we  easily  tracked  you 
ou  to  the  boat.  And  such  a  set  of  mad  fellows  I  never 
saw  before  in  all  the  days  of  my  life ;  one  would  have 
thought  you  were  going  to  have  a  frolic  instead  of  a 
deadly  fight  with  desperate  men  3  but  this  horrid  country 
makes  all  the  people  mad,  and  mad  they  must  have  been 
to  come  to  it,  and  madder  to  stop  in  it — that's  my 
opinion !" 

"Mr.  Crab  entertains  peculiar  views,"  said  Moss, 
''  and  he  has  his  own  way  of  expressing  himself  :  but  to 
proceed  with  my  story — that  is,  if  I  am  not  making  it 
too  long." 

"  Not  a  bit,"  said  I ;  "we  have  nothing  to  do  but  to 
hear  it ;  and,  as  I  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  fray,  I 
should  like  to  hear  the  end  of  it." 

"Well,  then,"  said  Moss,  "we  worked  hard  all  that  day, 
but  we  could  not  construct  anything  to  our  minds  as  a 
fighting  raft.  Half  of  the  soldiers  were  despatched 
to  keep  watch  on  the  part  of  the  shore  which  we  had 
quitted,  and  which  was  nearest  to  the  island.  We  passed 
the  night  as  usual,  but  we  had  plenty  of  fires  to  keep  the 
cold  off.  Next  day  we  finished  our  raft,  which  we 
launched  into  the  water.  It  was  then  towed  by  the  boat 
towards  the  island.  When  we  approached  within  range, 
a  musket-shot  was  fired  from  the  shore,  which  we  ob- 
served fell  short  of  the  boat  in  the  water,  but  we  saw  no 
one  on  the  beach." 

"  This  will  never  do,"  said  the  magistrate;  "  we  shall 
all  be  picked  off  this  way." 

He  then  called  out  to  the  sergeant  to  go  back,  which  was 
done,  and  we  returned  to  the  land  to  the  point  from  which 


Soldiers  Join   the  Party        253 

the  bush-rangers  bad  started  the  iiioruing  before.  Wo 
all  went  on  shore  again,  and  consulted  on  what  sh  nxld 
be  done.  We  were  engaged  in  this  deliberation,  when 
we  were  agreeably  surprised  by  the  appearance  of  a  cor- 
poral's party  of  soldiers,  and  presently  afterwards  by  a 
bullock -cart  drawn  by  four  bullocks,  and  bearing  another 
boat,  which  had  been  despatched  from  Hobart  Town  to 
the  lake,  as  it  was  guessed  such  an  assistance  might  be 
wanted.  This  boat  was  larger  and  stronger  than  the  one 
we  had  found,  and  being  thus  provided,  and  our  strength 
being  reinforced  by  the  addition  of  the  corporal's  party, 
it  was  at  once  resolved  that  we  should  force  the  bush- 
rangers in  their  retreat  by  a  simultaneous  attack  on  dif- 
ferent points.  The  sergeant  took  the  command  of  one 
boat,  and  the  magistrate  of  the  other. 


The  Governor's  Proclamation — The  Magistrate's  Mission — The  Ser- 
geant's Device — The  Bush-rangers  Captured. 

We  were  just  shoving  off  from  the  shore,  when  a  mes- 
senger on  horseback  arrived  from  Hobart  Town,  bearing 
a  letter  from  the  Governor  to  the  magistrate,  which  of 
course  we  stopped  to  read,  as  the  despatch  was  marked 
"Important  and  immediate."  The  magistrate  having 
read  it  over  to  himself,  said  that  as  its  contents  concerned 
us  all,  he  would  read  it  aloud,  which  he  did  to  the  fol- 
lowing effect : — 

''By ,  Esq.,  Lieutenant-Governor  of  his  Majesty's 

Settlements  on  Van  Diomcn's  Land,  &c.  &c.  &c. 

"  Whereas  the  convicts  named  in  the  margin,  who  have 
been  sent  to  the  new  settlement  of  Macquarie  Harbour, 
have  effected  their  escape  by  passing  the  mountains,  and 
are  now  at  large ;  and  whereas  it  has  been  represented  to 

me  by ,  Esq.,  at  whose  house  the  said  convicts,  or 

several  of  them,  were  on  the  0th  instant,  that  they  or 
several  of  them  were  desirous  of  surrendering  themselves 
to  the  Government;  I  do  hereby  declare  that  all  or  any  of 
the  convicts  named  in  the  margin,  together  with  such 
others  as  may  have  made  their  escape  from  Macquarie 
Harbour  at  the  same  time,  shall  be  pardoned  for  all 
(254) 


The  GovEiiNOii's  Proclamation.    255 

offences  committed  by  tliem,  murder  excepted,  upon  sur- 
rendering themselves,  with  their  arms,  to  any  of  the 
under-named  gentlemen,  they  being  in  the  nomination 
for  the  magistracy  of  this  island,  or  to  any  officer  or  non- 
commissioned officer  commanding  a  party  of  the  King's 
troops,  provided  that  such  suiTender  shall  be  made  on  or 
before  the  21st  instant. 

"  And  I  do  hereby  require  and  authorize ,  Esq., 

of  the  Clyde; ,  Esq.,  of  Jericho;  and , 

Esq.,  of  the  Clyde,  they  being  in  the  nomination  of  the 
magistracy,  to  receive  all  or  any  of  the  said  convicts  on 
their  voluntary  surrender,  to  convey  to  them  a  pledge  on 
my  part  that  no  charge  shall  be  exhibited  against  them 
for  any  offence  committed  by  them  in  this  island,  mur- 
der excepted,  provided  they  shall  surrender  themselves, 
with  their  arms,  on  or  before  the  21st  instant. 

"  And  I  do  hereby  declare,  that  in  the  event  of  the 
said  convicts  not  accepting  the  mercy  herein  offered,  and 
of  their  continuing  in  a  state  of  resistance  to  the  laws 
after  the  time  specified,  I  will  cause  the  whole  of  the 
King's  troops,  together  with  the  armed  inhabitants,  to  be 
put  in  motion  against  them,  and  that  I  will  put  a  price 
upon  each  of  their  heads,  authorizing  all  his  Majesty's 
subjects  to  bring  them  in,  dead  or  alive. 

"  And  I  do  hereby  further  declare  that  I  do  by  this 
paper,  under  my  hand,  and  the  seal  of  the  colony,  convey 
to  you  full  power  to  pledge  me  to  the  several  convicts  for 
the  performance  of  all  herein  expressed  and  declared  on 
my  part,  and  to  receive  their  surrender. 

" ,  Lieutenant-Governor. 

"  Government- House,  Hobart  Town, 

"To .Esq., 

"  River  Clyde." 


256    The  Magistrate's  Resolution. 

"Now,  my  friends,"  said  the  worthy  justice,  "it  is 
all  very  well  to  show  your  courage  and  your  determina- 
tion in  making  an  attack  on  these  bush-rangers,  but  we  must 
not  be  too  hasty  in  the  matter.  Bear  in  mind  that  our 
object  should  be  to  capture  these  dangerous  men  without 
necessarily  exposing  our  own  lives,  or  the  lives  of  these 
brave  soldiers  who  are  so  eager  to  get  to  close  quarters  with 
the  murderers  of  their  comrade.  As  the  Government 
has  empowered  us  to  oifer  that  their  lives  should  be 
spared,  with  the  exception  of  the  actual  murderers,  on 
the  condition  of  their  surrendering  themselves,  it  is  my 
duty  to  make  the  clemency  of  the  Government  known  to 
them,  and  to  give  them  this  chance  of  saving  their  lives." 

There  was  some  murmuring  at  this,  and  it  was  con- 
tended that  no  terms  ought  to  be  kept  with  villains  who 
had  committed  outrages  and  atrocities  so  horrible  as 
these  had  done ;  but  the  magistrate  was  firm  in  his  sense 
of  his  duty,  and  declared  that  he  was  determined  to  give 
effect  to  the  merciful  intentions  of  the  Government. 

"  But  how  are  we  to  acquaint  them  with  it  ?"  said  the 
sergeant;  "  they  will  be  sure  to  fire  on  us  if  we  approach 
them  in  a  body,  and  I  don't  suppose  that  any  one  of  us 
is  inclined  to  go  alone  into  their  den  of  wolves  !" 

"  I  will  not  ask  any  one  to  do  my  duty  for  me,"  said 
the  magistrate ;  "  I  shall  take  one  of  the  constables  with 
me  to  pull  the  boat,  and  go  alone,  and  without  arms ;  my 
mission  will  be  a  mission  of  peace  and  mercy,  and  I  must 
take  my  chance  of  the  rest.  Come,  Worrall,"  said  he, 
"  step  into  the  boat  and  pull  me  over." 

"  I'm  a  bad  hand  at  pulling,"  said  Worrall,  "  and  be- 
sides, they  have  a  particular  spite  against  me,  and  would 
skin  me  alive  if  they  could  get  me ;  not  that  I  mind,  only 
I  would  rather  anybody  else  did  the  job  this  time." 


WoRRALi/s  Fears.  257 

*<  You  can  pull  a  long  face,"  said  the  sergeant,  ''  at  any 
rate;  but  one  of  us  can  go,  if  bis  honour  pleases." 

"No,  no,"  said  the  magistrate;  ''Worrall  is  the 
proper  man ;  it  is  right  that  he  should  attend  me  in  his 
official  capacity." 

It  was  with  the  most  ludicrous  reluctance  that  Wor- 
rall  proceeded  to  exercise  his  official  functions  on  this  dis- 
agreeable occasion ;  and  as  his  face  was  turned  towards 
us  as  he  sat  in  the  boat  with  the  sculls  in  his  hand,  the 
dolorous  countenance  of  that  usually  facetious  indi- 
vidual raised  a  general  shout  of  laughter. 

"  I  know,"  said  Worrall,  in  most  lugubrious  accents, 
"I'm  booked;  I  shall  be  riddled  like  a  sieve.  Ah  !  you 
may  laugh,  but  how  would  you  like  it  yourselves  ?  And 
the  bush-rangers  always  put  jagged  balls  in  their  guns, 
out  of  spite ;  as  if  smooth  ones  would  not  do  as  well." 

'  Give  me  a  stick — and  tie  something  white — a  hand- 
kerchief, or  something,  to  it,  that  we  may  not  run  any 
useless  risk.  That  will  do — now  shove  us  off — and — 
Worrall — what's  the  matter  with  the  man  ?  Give  way  ! 
the  sooner  we  are  there,  the  sooner  it  will  be  over." 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Crab,  "  if  you  don't  like  to  be  shot 
yourself,  you  needn't  disgust  other  people  with  it. 
What  made  you  stay  in  this  horrid  country?  It's  your 
own  fault  for  stopping  in  it,  where  there's  nothing  but 
wild  bush-rangers  and  savage  natives  to  murder  and  de- 
vour you — that's  my  opinion." 

"  Oh  !"  groaned  Worrall,  "  it  will  be  all  over  soon 
enough !" 

The  boat  proceeded  languidly  on  its  way,  feebly  pro- 
pelled by  exceedingly  slow  strokes,  the  sculls,  as  we  ob- 
served, rising  perpendicularly  into  the  air,  and  descend- 
17 


258    Parley  with  the  Kanqers. 

ing  again  in  a  straight  line  into  the  water,  thereby  caus- 
ing the  least  possible  motion  to  the  boat  which  bore  the 
wretched  Worrall  to  his  miserable  doom,  who  ever  and 
anon  looked  over  his  shoulder  towards  the  anticipated 
spot  of  his  expected  sacrifice,  ducking  his  head  occa- 
sionally with  a  quick  and  frantic  motion,  to  avoid  the 
shots  which  his  fears  suggested  were  being  aimed  at  him. 
The  magistrate,  who  was  standing  up  in  the  boat  with 
the  white  flag  in  his  hand,  at  last  seized  hold  of  Wor- 
ralFs  almost  paralysed  hands,  and  forcing  him  to  row, 
"by  a  few  vigorous  strokes  the  boat  was  soon  forced  into 
the  mid-channel. 

We  now  observed  the  bush-rangers  assembling  on  the 
beach  of  the  island  in  order  of  fighting,  and  with  their 
arms  in  their  hands.  As  the  boat  approached  the  shore, 
we  saw  the  magistrate  wave  his  white  flag  in  one  hand, 
while  in  the  other  he  held  up  the  open  letter  which  he 
had  received  from  the  Governor.  The  boat  now  neared 
the  shore  and  became  stationary,  but  we  could  not  hear 
what  passed. 

"  I  will  supply  that  deficiency,"  said  the  magistrate. 
"  I  confess  I  did  not  feel  very  comfortable  as  we  ap- 
proached the  spot  where  the  bush-rangers  were  assem- 
bled, and  when  I  felt  that  my  life  was  in  their  power; 
but  I  lost  no  time  in  telling  them  of  the  merciful  offer 
of  the  Governor.  Worrall  had  laid  himself  down  at  the 
bottom  of  the  boat,  which  I  saw  excited  the  bush- 
ranger's suspicions;  I  made  him  get  up,  therefore,  and 
when  they  caught  sight  of  his  face,  there  was  a  general 
shout  of  anger,  and  more  than  one  piece  was  levelled  at 
him.  I  put  up  my  hand  and  appealed  to  their  honour, 
and  said  that  I  had  trusted  myself  among  them  in  order 


Refuse  TO  Surrender.  259 

to  save  life ;  that  I  was  bound  to  do  my  duty,  and  that 
I  could  not  better  evince  my  desire  to  save  them  from 
the  consequences  of  their  holding  out,  than  by  my 
present  act  in  confiding  to  their  good  feelings.  I  am  in- 
clined to  think  that  my  eloquence  would  not  have  saved 
me  from  their  murderous  inclinations,  if  it  had  not  been 
for  their  leader,  who  really  is  a  fine  fellow,  and  T  should 
like  to  save  him  if  I  could.  Some  of  the  rascals  called 
out  '  Treachery  !'  and  pointed  their  guns  at  me,  but  their 
leader  (the  Gypsey)  stopped  them,  and  he  and  I  had  a 
parley  together.  I  should  say  that  I  observed  evident 
signs  in  some  of  them  of  an  inclination  to  submit  them- 
selves. 

" '  Will  all  our  lives  be  spared  ?'  said  the  Grypsey,  '  if 
we  surrender  ?'  '  Not  all/  said  I ;  '  but  all  except  those 
who  actually  committed  the  murders  with  which  you  are 
charged.'  '  But  we  are  all  in  for  it,'  said  he,  '  and  we 
must  stand  or  fall  together;  we  won't  agree  to  have  some 
picked  out  from  the  rest  to  be  hanged  in  Camp  yonder  V 
'  I  cannot  engage,'  said  I,  '  that  all  your  lives  shall  be 
spared ;  but  your  immediate  and  quiet  surrender  would 
no  doubt  go  far  in  your  favour.'  '  Let  us  hear  that 
part  of  the  Governor's  letter  read  to  us  word  for  word/ 
said  the  Gypsey. 

"  I  read  it  to  them  from  beginning  to  end,  but  they 
shook  their  heads  at  it. 

"  '  It  wont  do,'  said  the  Gypsey ;  '  we  may  as  well  be 
shot  as  be  hanged.  But  you  see  we  are  well  armed,  and 
prepared  for  you.  "We  don't  wish  to  do  you  any  harm ; 
I  believe  you  mean  well  to  us ;  but  if  you  attack  us,  you 
must  take  the  consequence.  We  will  fight  it  out  to  the 
death.     What  say  you  my  men,  shall  it  be  life  or  death 


260  False  Signals. 

with  us?'  'Ay,  ay,'  said  the  men;  'no  surrender,  no 
surrender.' 

"  I  thought  my  position  was  getting  ticklish,  for  the 
bush-rangers  were  working  themselves  up  to  a  pitch  of 
savage  fuiy.  I,  therefore,  thought  of  the  best  mode  of 
retiring. 

"  *  I  will  give  you,'  said  I,  '  another  hour  to  consider 
of  the  offer  of  the  Governor ;  if  before  the  end  of  that 
time  you  will  consent  to  submit,  hold  up  a  bough  by  the 
water's  edge,  which  we  shall  be  able  to  see  from  the 
other  side.  I  leave  you  now,  hoping  that  you  will  con- 
sider the  merciful  offer  of  the  Governor,  and  take  advan- 
tage of  this  chance  of  saving  your  lives.'  So  saying, 
and  without  waiting  for  a  reply,  I  immediately  took  the 
sculls  and  pulled  back ;  and  glad  enough  was  I  to  escape 
so  well,  I  can  assure  you.  And  now,  Moss,  do  you  tell 
the  rest." 

We  waited  till  the  expiration  of  the  hour  (said  Moss), 
but  we  observed  that  the  bush-rangers  were  very  busy 
with  the  dead  wood,  and  with  boughs  of  trees,  which 
they  cut  down  and  dragged  to  the  shore,  to  form,  as  it 
seemed,  a  shelter,  behind  which  they  might  defend  them- 
selves, and  at  the  end  of  the  time  we  saw  one  of  them 
holding  the  bough  of  a  tree  in  his  hand,  which  he  waved 
about. 

"  They  have  agreed  to  surrender,"  said  the  magis- 
trate; "don't  you  see  the  signal  which  we  agreed  on?" 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it,"  said  the  old  sergeant ;  "  those  forti- 
fications have  not  been  run  up  for  nothing  :  the  treache- 
rous devils,  they  show  tliat  branch  as  a  feint,  depend 
upon  it,  to  put  us  off  our  guard.  But  I  think  we  may 
take   advantage  of  tin  ir  own  stratngeni,  and  by  pretend- 


The  Sergeant's   Stkatagem.     261 

ing  to  be  deceived,  we  shall  be  able  to  deceive  them. 
Now,  sir,"  said  he  to  the  magistrate,  "  will  jou  be  ruled 
by  me  for  this  once  ?  I'm  an  old  peninsular  campaigner, 
and  have  had  some  experience  in  the  bush  with  the 
Yankees,  and  I  am  up  to  their  mana?uvrcs." 

"  With  all  my  heart, '^  said  the  magistrate ;  ''  what  do 
you  propose  to  do  ?" 

"  Why  this  is  what  I  propose.  First,  do  you  get  into 
the  boat  again  with  Worrall,  as  if  you  saw  and  understood 
their  signal,  and  relied  upon  their  meaning  to  surrender. 
When  you  are  sure  they  have  seen  you  do  this,  then 
come  back,  as  if  you  had  determined  on  some  other  plan 
of  receiving  their  submission.  Now  look  at  the  wind. 
You  see  it  blows  from  us  to  them  pretty  smartish.  Let 
all  of  us  hoist  white  flags  or  boughs  of  trees ;  they  will 
see  us  from  the  other  side,  and  they  will  think  we  are 
sure  of  their  surrendering  quietly,  and  so  being  deceived, 
if  they  mean  treachery,  we  shall  be  able  to  circumvent 
them.  Now  you  see  the  wind,  as  I  said,  blows  froin  us 
to  them.  We  must  make  a  large  fire,  as  if  for  cooking, 
and  to  make  it  look  as  if  we  had  abandoned  all  thoufrhts 
of  fighting." 

"  How  will  that  help  us?"  said  the  magistrate. 

''  Why,  you  see  when  we  make  a  good  fire,  we  can 
make  at  the  same  time  a  good  smoke,  and  smoke  enough 
to  hide  us  from  the  view  of  the  bush-rangers." 

"  And  what  will  you  do  then?" 

"  Let  one  boat  go  straight  forward,  making  all  the  noise 
you   can,  to  fix   their  attention,  while  the  other  steals 
round  to  the  side  of  the  island.     We  soldiers  will  go  in  ' 
that,  and  take  them  in  flank,  and  then  we  shall  have 
them  nicely ;  and  while  they  are  engaged  with  us,  you 


2B2    They  throw  off  the  Disguise. 

can  push  on  and  land,  and  so  tliey  will  be  betM'een  two 
fires." 

'' Grood !"  said  the  magistrate;  "a  capital  scheme; 
that  is,  if  you  can  make  smoke  enough." 

"  Oh,  let  me  alone  for  that,"  said  the  sergeant ;  ''  I 
learnt  that  trick  long  ago  in  America ;  I'll  warrant  I'  11  make 
a  smoke  that  a  man  can't  see  a  pot  of  beer  through  it." 

The  sergeant's  plan  was  immediately  carried  into  exe- 
cution. We  collected  a  quantity  of  dead  leaves,  which 
at  this  season  of  the  year  are  damp  and  difficult  to  in- 
flame. We  first  made  a  fii-e  as  usual,  and  then  we  pro- 
ceeded to  light  others  along  the  shore,  taking  care  to 
smother  them  with  dead  leaves,  which  raised  plenty  of 
smoke,  which  the  wind  carried  over  the  water  in  the  di- 
rection of  the  island.  We  then  manned  the  boats,  and 
pursuing  the  plan  of  the  sergeant,  made  as  much  noise 
as  possible  in  pulling  over.  In  the  meantime,  under 
cover  of  the  smoke,  the  second  boat,  with  the  sergeant 
and  his  party,  made  the  best  of  its  way  to  the  side  of 
the  island.  When  we  came  within  speaking  distance,  a 
voice  hailed  us  : — 

"What  the  devil  do  you  kick  up  such  a  smoke  for?" 

"  The  wood  by  the  side  of  the  lake  is  damp,  and  will 
not  burn.  We  saw  your  signal,  and  we  are  come  to  re- 
ceive your  surrender." 

"  Surrender  be !     More  fools  you  to  suppose  we 

were  going  to  give  ourselves  up  to  be  hanged  like  sheep 
in  a  slaughter-house.     Take  that  for  your  folly." 

At  these  words  a  volley  was  fired  at  us,  but  we  were 
prepared  for  it,  and  by  falling  down  in  the  boat  we  es- 
caped it  altogether,  the  shots,  in  the  obscurity  of  the 
smoke,  going  over  our  heads.     Without  returning  the 


The  Double   At  tack.  263 

fire,  we  immediately  pulled  off,  and  wlaen  we  had  got  to 
a  safe  distance,  we  began  to  fire,  to  distract  the  attention 
of  the  bush-rangers  from  the  second  boat.  We  con- 
tinued to  fire  for  some  minutes,  tJll  the  smoke  cleared 
away,  and  then  we  had  the  satisfaction  to  see  that  the 
boat  with  the  soldiers  had  succeeded  in  getting  round  a 
point  of  land  which  concealed  them  from  the  sight  of 
the  bush-rangers. 

•'The  murderous  and  treacherous  rascals  I"  muttered 
Worrall,  "they  deserve  to  be  punished  for  this  villanous 
treachery.  Lucky  we  were  to  escape  from  them,  but  T 
suppose  the  Gypsey  thought  he  should  secure  our  de- 
struction best  by  this  trick." 

"Now,"  said  the  magistrate,  "we  may  calculate  the 
soldiers  have  landed.  Let  us  pull  inshore  and  be  ready 
to  second  them.  Fire  as  fast  as  you  can  till  we  get  close 
in,  and  then  let  half  reserve  their  fire.  There  are  the 
soldiers  stealing  round !  The  bush-rangers  don't  see 
them  yet !  They  little  expect  an  attack  from  that 
quarter !  Now,  my  friends  I  Fire  away  !  Keep  it  up. 
There  go  the  soldiers  !  Give  way  ! — pull — pull — reserve 
your  fire  !  There  go  the  soldiers  again  !  The  rascals 
are  puzzled  !  They  don't  know  what  to  make  of  it. 
Pull  away!     I'ullaway!" 

We  were  not  long  in  reaching  the  shore,  and  the  bush- 
rangers being  engaged  with  their  unexpected  enemy, 
seemed  panic-struck.  They  fired  at  the  soldiers,  but 
without  vigour  and  without  aim.  In  the  meantime  we 
were  upon  them  on  the  other  side ;  and  the  soldiers,  fix- 
ing their  bayonets,  without  hesitating,  charged  in  among 
them. 

We  got  up  to  them  at  nearly  the  same  time,  and  stopped 


264  Escape  of  Gypset. 

their  retreat.  They  were  so  bewildered  by  the  sudden- 
ness of  the  unexpected  attack  of  the  soldiers,  that  they 
made  but  little  resistance,  with  the  exception  of  the  Gyp- 
sey  and  another  man,  who  seeing  that  their  game  was 
lost,  darted  into  the  wood.  Thinking  that  we  had  them 
safe  within  the  island,  we  first  turned  our  attention  to  the 
securing  of  those  we  had  got,  whom  we  bound  hand  and 
foot  before  they  had  time  to  recover  from  their  panic ; 
three  of  them  lay  dead  from  the  fire  of  the  soldiers,  and 
several  were  slightly  wounded. 

^'Where's  their  leader?"     cried  the  magistrate. 

''  He  has  escaped  for  the  present,  but  we  are  sure  to 
have  him  at  last." 

"The  boat,"  said  the  sergeant;  ^' the  boat  on  the 
other  side — look  to  it." 

It  was  too  late.  The  Gypsey  had  been  too  quick  for 
us.  We  saw  him  above  a  couple  of  miles  from  the  shore, 
pulling  with  his  companion  with  all  their  might  to  the 
iiKiin  land. 

"There  they  go,"  said  Crab — ''and  all  that  we  have 
(lone  is  of  no  use,  and  I  have  got  one  of  their  buck-shot 
through  my  arm;  more  fool  I  for  going  after  them. 
What  have  I  to  do  with -fighting  bush-rangers?  And 
tliere  go  the  two  greatest  rogues  of  the  lot ;  they  were 
the  ringleaders  and  the  stirrers  up  of  all  the  mischief; 
and  all  our  work  is  to  do  over  again.  I'll  be  bound,  be- 
fore night,  tliey'll  connuit  a  dozen  murders  at  least. 
Well,  this  is  making  a  silly  end  of  it — that's  my  opinion  I" 

"  Corporal,"  said  the  sergeant,  "  lose  no  time  ;  you 
must  put  yourself  on  their  tracks  ;  you  and  your  party 
will  be  enough  for  tho.te  two ;  I  will  take  care  of  the 
prisoners." 


Return   to  the  C  l  r  d  e  .  iCo 

"  Put  the  corporal's  party  on  shore,"  said  the  magis- 
trate, to  the  two  constables,  "  where  the  other  boa:  lauds. 
You  can  then  return  and  tow  it  back  with  you." 

"VVorrall  and  his  fellow-constables  stepped  into  the 
boat,  and  the  corporal  making  the  usual  military  salaam, 
departed  with  his  men  in  pursuit  of  the  terrible  Gypsey 
When  they  returned,  we  all  crossed  over  to  the  main  land, 
much  to  the  joy  of  our  friend  Beresford,  and  the  relief 
of  the  Government  messenger.  We  immediately  set  off 
on  our  return  to  the  Clyde,  when  to  our  surprise  we 
learnt  that  you  had  not  yet  arrived.  We  feared  that 
you  had  been  killed  by  the  natives,  but  Crab  insisted  on 
immediately  going  in  search  of  you,  as  he  said  you  might 
be  lamed  or  lost  in  the  bush. 

Information  was  brought  to  us  that  the  magistrate's 
horse,  on  which  you  had  started  from  the  lake,  had  re- 
turned home  lame,  and  without  saddle  or  bridle.  This 
increased  our  fears  for  your  safety,  and  we  had  no  diffi- 
culty in  mustering  a  sufficient  party  to  aid  you  in  case 
of  danger.     Thank  God  we  found  you  when  we  did. 

"  It  was  just  in  time,"  said  I. 

"It  was,  indeed;  but  that's  over  now;  and  when  you 
get  home  to  your  family  you  will  soon  recover  yourself, 
and  get  things  to  rights  again." 

With  this  we  turned  ourselves  to  sleep,  and  I  slept 
soundly.  The  morning  light  found  me  refreshed  and  re- 
stored, and  I  roused  up  the  party  to  lose  no  time  in  cross- 
ing the  river.  We  found  a  fording  place  higher  up,  and 
crossed  without  accident.  Beresford  placed  himself  by 
my  side,  and  we  strode  cheerfully  on. 

After  a  sharp  march  of  some  miles,  wo  passed  the 
Shannon ,  nnd  I  began  to  feel  mvi=clf  ncain 


266  M  I  8  8   M  0  s  s  . 

"  What  has  become  of  poor  Lucy  Moss  ?"  said  I.  ''  It 
was  you  who  saved  her  life  ou  that  awful  night.  When 
we  left  her  on  our  expedition  to  the  lake,  she  had  not 
recovered  consciousness.     Is  she  still  alive  ?" 

"  Miss  Moss  has  to  thank  your  wife  for  her  recovery/' 
?aid  Beresford,  "more  than  me.  But  look  there !  Did 
you  ever  see  such  a  shot  ? — that  cockatoo  on  the  end  of 
the  branch  of  the  tree  there." 

"Never  mind  the  cockatoo,  man,"  said  I;  "we  have 
had  shooting  enough  for  one  bout ;  let  the  cockatoo  alone. 
Well,  poor  girl,  I  hope  she  is  grateful  to  you  for  her  life, 
when  you  carried  her  in  your  arms  on  that  terrible  night 
that  we  found  her  lying  on  the  trunk  of  the  tree  over  the 
Clyde.  It  is  not  every  one  that  would  have  perilled  his 
life  by  scrambling  along  that  tree  like  an  opossum,  as 
you  did ;  and  I  remember  how  very  kind  you  were ;  and 
when  we  offered  to  help  you,  you  said  the  poor  girl  was 
not  in  the  least  heavy,  and  I  suppose — but  bless  the  man, 
what  is  the  matter  with  him  ?  you  are  not  going  to  faint 
are  you  ?  And  what  makes  you  turn  so  red  in  that  odd 
way  ?" 

.  "  It's  my  arm,"  said  he,  "  that  gives  me  a  twinge  now 
and  then." 

"Oh! — is  it?  and  who  has  done  it  up  so  nicely? 
Here's  been  a  woman's  hand  in  this,  I'll  swear.  Was  it 
my  wife  that  sewed  on  all  these  little  black  ribands  so 
prettil}^— eh  ?" 

"  It  was  not  Mrs.  Thornlcy  who  did  it  exactly  .  .  ." 

"  Exactly  !    What,  had  anybody  else  a  hand  in  it  ?" 

"Not  particularly — that  is,  not  altogether;  but  Mrs. 
Thornley  had  the  kindness  to  hold  my  arm — while — 
1  think  it  was  Miss  Moss  who  sewed  on  the  tics." 

"Oh  !  it  was;  and  who" 


Home!  267 

"There's  the  Clyde  at  last,"  said  Eeresfonl.  "Look, 
— cast  your  eyes  just  over  that  bare  brunch  of  the  high 
gum  tree — don't  you  see  the  water  ?  It  can't  be  more 
than  four  miles  from  us." 

"You  seem  to  be  in  a  particular  hurry  to  get  back. 
Nothing  wrong  about  your  affairs,  I  hope  ?" 

''  Oh  dear,  no  !    The  truth  is,  that — that  I  want — that 

is — that  I'm  anxious" 

'Anxious  to  do  what?" 

"  To  see  how  your  men — that  is,  my  men — have  got  on 
with  the  hedging  and  ditching  since  I've  been  away." 

"  Indeed !"  said  I. 

I  did  not  make  any  further  observation  to  my  young 
friend,  who  suddenly  quitted  my  side,  but  I  thought  a 
good  deal,  and  I  said  to  myself — ''  I've  seen  many  curi- 
ous things  in  my  time,  but  I  never  knew  a  young  fellow 
in  such  a  hurry  to  see  a  hedge  and  ditch  before ! 

But  I  was  now  drawing  nearer  and  nearer  to  home, 
and  that  feeling  put  out  of  my  head  all  other  thoughts. 
The  loud  and  joyous  shouts  of  our  party  proclaimed  from 
a  distance  their  approach  and  their  success.  In  a  mo- 
ment I  crossed  the  memorable  tree  across  the  river,  and 
found  myself  once  more  in  the  embraces  of  my  wife  and 
children. 


He  returns  to  his  Home — Sets  about  repairing  his  Disasters — 
How  to  build  a  House  with  pulverized  Earth — Mr.  Crab's  in- 
creased importance,  and  how  sheep  may  increase  from  one 
hundred  to  two  thousand — The  building  of  a  stone  House  re- 
solved on. 

It  is  now  fourteen  years  since  the  events  which  I 
have  related  happened ;  but  I  remember  them  as  if  they 
were  of  yesterday.  Taking  my  wife  in  one  hand,  and 
my  eldest  daughter  in  the  other,  I  led  them  silently  to 
the  humble  hut,  which  now  formed  our  only  dwelling. 
Our  hearts  were  too  full  to  speak.  I  looked  round  for 
William  ;  my  wife  guessed  my  thoughts. 

"  William  is  out  seeking  for  you  over  the  hills  to- 
wards Sorrell's  Lake." 

I  looked  on  my  other  children,  and  kissed  them  one 
by  one. 

"  Let  me  be  alone,"  I  said,  "for  a  little  while  : — my 
head  is  giddy." 

I  sat  down  on  a  wooden  bench,  and  tried  to  collect  my 
thoughts ;  but  the  revulsion  was  too  much  for  me. 
The  terrible  emotions  which  I  had  suffered  had  shaken  me 
more  than  I  was  aware  of:  the  events  of  a  lifetime 
seemed  to  have  been  crowded  into  the  ten  days*  space 
since  I  had  left  my  happy  home. 

In  that  brief  time  how  much  had  I  suffered  !     I  had 

fought  in  some  desperate  conflicts  !     I  had  been  lost  for 
(26S  ) 


Affecting  Meeting.  269 

six  days  in  the  dreary  and  dismal  bush  !  I  had  been 
all  but  overcome  in  my  death-struggle  with  the  natives  ! 
Desolation  now  met  my  eyes  where  I  had  left  abundance  ; 
and  the  blackened  ruins  of  my  once  cheerful  cott-age 
lay  in  a  melancholy  heap  as  I  passed  them  by  ! 

Overcome  by  the  sudden  rush  of  all  these  thoughts 
which  at  once  assailed  me,  and  overpowered  with  the  sur- 
passing joy  of  beholding  those  whom  so  recently  I  had 
never  expected  to  see  again,  I  felt  that  choking  at  the 
throat  which  seizes  on  those  who  are  torn  by  conflicting 
emotions  :  mine  were  joy  and  sadness.  I  think  my  bosom 
would  have  burst  had  not  tears  come  to  my  relief;  I 
tried  to  check  them  as  unmanly  and  unseemly  at  such 
a  moment :  but  they  came  thicker  and  thicker,  and  in  the 
fulness  and  thankfulness  of  my  joy  I  sobbed  aloud. 

My  dear  wife  took  my  hands  and  pressed  them  ten- 
derly ;  motioning  her  to  kneel  down  with  me,  I  raised 
my  heart  in  gratitude  and  prayer  to  that  Being,  through 
whose  help  I  had  been  sustained  in  my  many  perils. 
Then  summoning  my  children,  I  caressed  them  again, 
and  my  dear  William  soon  after  coming  in,  with  all  the 
boisterous  gladness  of  a  young  heart,  shouted  out  his 
joyous  greeting. 

That  evening  was  one  of  joy  and  thankfulness;  we 
did  not  think  of  what  we  had  lost,  but  of  what  we  had 
gained.  But  a  sort  of  brain  fever  was  the  consequence 
of  the  excitement  to  which  I  had  been  exposed,  which 
confined  me  for  many  days  to  my  bed. 

When  I  recovered  sufficiently  to  attend  to  my  affairs, 
I  found  that  I  had  in  a  great  measure  to  begin  again  the 
work  of  a  settler  in  the  country ;  but  industry  and  per- 
severance will  conquer  most  difficulties ;  so  I  set  about 


270       Beresford's   Attentions. 

repairing  my  disasters  with  a  stout  heart,  and  as  we  all 
worked  willingly,  we  worked  cheerfully,  stimulated  by 
the  feeling  that  we  were  working  for  ourselves,  and  that 
every  improvement  that  we  made — every  stone  that  we 
laid — and  every  stick  that  we  planted,  was  on  our  land, 
and  for  the  benefit  of  ourselves  and  our  children. 

My  first  care  was  to  look  after  my  sheep ;  for  that  was 
my  main  stock,  and  what  I  most  depended  on.  I  had  the 
mortification  to  find  that  my  home  flock  of  merinoes 
had  got  dispersed  in  the  bush,  but  my  three  other  flocks 
at  their  difi"erent  runs,  consisting  of  about  three  thou- 
sand, were  safe.  It  took  some  time  to  recover  my  me- 
rinoes, for  they  had  strayed  away,  and  had  become 
mixed  with  the  sheep  of  various  neighbours,  but  I  got 
them  nearly  all  together  again  after  a  short  time.  As 
to  the  tame  cattle,  they  were  gathered  in  by  degrees, 
but  it  cost  my  horses  severe  work  to  get  in  the  wild  herds, 
with  which  they  were  mixed. 

The  worst  part  of  the  business  was  the  loss  by  fire  at 
home  of  furniture,  bedding,  books,  and  indeed  of  almost 
everything  that  the  old  cottage  and  the  adjacent  build- 
ings contained.  But  there  were  no  lives  lost,  and  that 
was  a  great  consolation. 

My  friend  Moss  was  re-established  in  his  log  hut  on 
the  other  side  of  the  river,  and  I  heard  that  young  Beres- 
ford  was  particularly  attentive  in  giving  them  the  benefit 
of  his  assistance  in  putting  their  little  farm  to  rights, 
and  my  daughter  Betsy,  then  sixteen  years  of  age,  and 
inclined  to  be  saucy  occasionally,  told  me  very  demurely 
"  that  Mr.  Bcresford  was  so  very  kind ;  that  he  was  there 
every  day,  showing  Miss  Moss  how  to  plant  her  little 
flower-garden,  which  must  be  an   exceedingly  difiicult 


Necessity  for  a  House.  271 

thing  to  do,"  Betsy  remarL'cd,  "  on  the  other  side  of  the 
river,  as  the  flower-garden  did  not  seem  to  make  much 
progress,  although  her  instructor  was  always  explain- 
ing to  her  from  morning  to  night  something  or  other  about 
it." 

This  was  said  in  such  a  sly  way,  that  I  looked  on 
Betsy  with  eyes  which  betokened  some  little  surprise  at 
her  observations,  and  it  suddenly  struck  me  that  eight 
years  had  passed  away  since  I  first  came  to  the  Clyde, 
and  that  my  eldest  daughter,  now  sixteen  years  of  age, 
was  assuming  the  airs  of  womanhood. 

My  son  William,  too,  who  had  reached  his  eighteenth 
year,  had  lately  been  throwing  out  hints  on  the  propriety 
of  his  making  a  visit  to  Hobart  Town  to  purchase  razors. 
I  had  put  a  stop  to  that  sort  of  presumption  some  time 
before  by  gravely  offering  him  a  cart  and  four  bullocks  to 
bring  up  a  razor  for  him,  but  I  felt  that  these  pretensions 
would  at  no  distant  time  assume  a  character  which  re- 
quired care  and  consideration,  and  that  it  was  incumbent 
on  me  to  provide  for  them  in  time.  These  thoughts  acted 
as  further  stimulants  to  my  exertions. 

''This  is  a  bad  job.  Crab,"  I  began,  "but  it  might 
have  been  worse ;  there  have  been  no  lives  lost  from  thia 
sad  fire,  that  is  one  great  consolation ;  but  we  can't  livo 
without  a  house;  the  point  to  be  settled  is,  what  sort  of 
one  we  shall  build.  You  have  seen  a  good  deal  of  those 
new  sort  of  houses  at  Pitt  Water,  what  do  you  think  of 
them?" 

Now  it  must  be  premised,  that  Mr.  Crab  had  become 
a  very  important  personage  in  the  district  of  the  Clyde. 
At  the  beginning  of  1817,  seven  years  before,  I  had  pre- 
vailed  on  him  to  purchase  with  his  small  capital  a  hun- 


272        Profitable  Speculation. 

dred  ewes  heavy  with  lamb,  and  to  put  them  out  "  on 
thirds ;"  which  he  did  with  an  honest  settler  on  the 
other  side,  the  Launceston  side,  of  the  island. 

As  the  keeper  of  the  sheep  was  to  have  one-third  of 
their  produce  to  re-imburse  him  for  his  care  and  expense, 
two-thirds  remained  for  the  owner;  and  as  Crab  con- 
sumed none,  and  sold  little  of  the  increase,  excepting  for 
the  purpose  of  replacing  the  wethers  with  breeding  ewes, 
in  the  course  of  seven  years  Crab's  original  one  hundred 
ewes  had  increased,  notwithstanding  theft  and  all  sorts 
of  losses,  to  two  flocks  of  sheep  of  above  one  thousand 
each,  which  ho  had  established  on  separate  iims,  to  the 
eastward  of  Salt  Pan  Plains.  He  had  continued  to  live 
with  me  in  my  house,  and  was  considered,  as  he  consi- 
sidered  himself,  a  part  of  the  family,  and  maintained  his 
authority  as  the  autocrat  of  the  ploughs  and  corn-fields. 

I  must  add,  that  having  now  attained  the  age  of  sixty- 
eight,  he  had  become  more  obstinate  in  his  opinions  than 
ever,  and  my  recent  calamities,  which  he  declared  he 
had  all  along  foreseen  and  expected,  confirmed  him  in  his 
conviction  of  his  superior  penetration  and  sagacity. 

'^  What  do  you  think,  Crab,"  said  I,  "  of  running  up 
a  pise  house?  It's  easily  done,  and  we  can  do  it  with 
the  men  wo  have  got  about  us." 

Crab  slowly  raised  himself  from  the  log  of  a  tree  on 
which  he  was  sitting,  and  placing  on  the  rough  table  of 
gum-tree  boards  his  two  hard  and  brown  hands,  he  in- 
clined his  head  a  little  forwards  to  mc,  and  with  much 
solemnity  replied : — 

"  And  is  it  possible,  Mr.  Thorulcy,  that  you  are  think- 
ing of  building  another  house  in  this  miserable  place? 
Have  you  not  had  warning  enough,  by  bush-rangers,  and 


Betsy's  Extostulation.  273 

by  natives,  and  by  fires,  to  show  you  the  wrongncss  of 
all  that  you  have  done  ?  And  eight  years  ago,  in  this 
very  place,  did  I  not  tell  you  what  would  happen  ?  and 
hasn't  it  happened  ?  And  now  you  are  thinking  of  be- 
ginning it  all  over  again  !  Why,  it's  a  more  tempting  of 
Providence !" 

"  Oh,  papa,"  said  Betsy,  "  do  let  us  go  back  to  Eng- 
land. Since  all  this  work  about  the  bush-rangers  and  na- 
tives, I  declare  I'm  quite  frightened;  and  Resides  there's 
not  a  shop  near  us,  one  must  send  to  Ilobart  Town  for 
everything;  and  if  one  wants  a  new  riband  for  a  bonnet,  a 
bullock  cart  must  be  sent  fifty  miles  for  it.  The  idea 
of  bringing  up  a  new  bonnet  in  a  cart  drawn  by  four 
bullocks !" 

"  Nonsense,  Betsy,"  said  William ;  <'  what  do  you  want 
with  new  bonnets  up  here,  where  there  are  nothing  but 
cows  and  sheep  to  see  you?  ('ain't  there,  tholigh  ?'  I 
thought  Betsy  muttered).  To  be  sure,  it  is  awkward  not 
to  have  a  boot-maker  near,  and  if  you  want  any  trifle 
done  to  your  gun,  you  must  take  it  to  town.  That  cer- 
tainly is  a  nuisance." 

"  Miss  Betsy  is  a  very  sensible  young  lady,"  said  Crab, 
"  and  I  think  the  best  thing  to  be  done  is  for  us  all  to 
go  home  again  to  England,  and  there  we  can  have  a  nice 
little  farm,  and  in  Shropshire  I  know  many  that  are  to 
be  got  at  a  low  rent." 

"Rent!"  said  I;  ''that  would  be  a  settler.  Crab,  if 
there  was  no  other  argument  against  it.  Thank  heaven  ! 
we  have  done  with  rent !  Our  land  is  our  own ;  we  are 
our  own  masters ;  depending  on  our  own  exertions  for 
prosperity  and  fortune !" 

"  A  pretty  prosperity  has  come  of  it !"  said  the  indo- 
18 


27-i       Prosperity  and  Fortune. 

mitable  Crab.  "  It's  a  very  prosperous  state  of  affairs, 
isn't  it,  when  a  man  is  shot  at  day  after  day  by  bush- 
rangers, and  gets  lost  in  the  bush,  and  is  hunted  by  na- 
tives— and — I  ask  you,  now,  master,  whether,  in  your 
conscience,  you  can  deny  that  you  ought  at  this  moment 
to  be  a  roasted  man  ?" 

"  A  roasted  man  I"  said  my  wife.  ''  Good  heavens  ! 
Mr.  Crab,  what  odd  ideas  you  have  I" 

"  But  I'm  not  roasted  yet,"  said  I,  "and,  excepting 
that  clip  which  the  natives'  womera  gave  me  on  the  leg, 
I'm  not  much  the  worse  for  it.  And,  by-the-by.  Crab, 
how  do  your  sheep  get  on  beyond  the  Salt  Pan  Plains  ? 
Why,  you  will  have  more  sheep  in  a  short  time  than  you 
will  know  what  to  do  with.  What  would  you  do  with 
them  in  England  ?  It  would  requu-e  a  good  bit  of  land 
to  feed  two  thousand  sheep ;  and  then  the  rent !  No 
rent  to  pay  here — eh  !" 

"Eh  !"  said  Crab — "ah  !  but  it's  better  to  pay  rent 
and  have  your  property  safe,  than  pay  it  in  the  shape 
of  bush-rangers,  sheep-stealing,  and  burning,  and  such 
like." 

"  That's  a  drawback,"  said  I,  "  it  must  be  confessed; 
but  still,  my  friend  Crab,  with  all  those  drawbacks,  and 
in  spite  of  all  the  inconveniences  and  disadvantages  of 
this  wretched  country,  as  you  call  it,  you  have  contrived  to 
make  two  thousand  sheep  out  of  one  hundred  in  seven 
years  !  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  you  would  not  havo 
got  together  a  flock  of  two  thousand  sheep  in  England 
in  that  time,  or  in  any  time." 

"May  be  not,"  said  Crab — "may  be  not;  but  then 
in  England  you  can  sleep  in  your  bed  without  getting 
up  next  morning  and  finding  your  throat  cut,  or  your 


Crab's   Advice.  275 

house  burnt  about  your  cars.  Well,  well — a  wilful  man 
must  have  his  way !  I  suppose  you  must  wait  for  an- 
other disaster  worse  than  this  before  you'll  hear  reason ; 
but  the  end  will  come  at  last,  and  then  you'll  regret  you 
did  not  take  my  advice." 

"Come,  give  us  your  advice  about  a  pise  house,  as 
you  have  seen  some  of  them  and  I  have  not ;  will  they 
do?" 

"  Do !  Lord  bless  you — never  think  of  making  a  mud- 
pie  and  calling  it  a  house.  Who  ever  heard  of  patting 
mud  up  into  a  heap,  and  then  setting  a  roof  on  it  ? 
Why,  it  must  crumble  to  pieces,  or  be  washed  away  by 
the  first  rain  that  comes.  But  why  talk  of  a  mud 
house  when  you  have  plenty  of  stone  on  your  own 
land  ?" 

"Yes;  but  stone-masons'  work  is  so  very  expensive  in 
this  country,  and  such  a  house  would  take  so  long  in 
building." 

"Of  course  it  would;  everything  is  very  expensive 
ia  this  country;  but  you  should  have  thought  of  that 
before  you  came  into  it.  But  the  stone  house  that  I 
mean  is  one  which  you  might  build  of  the  same  sort  of 
stone  that  the  old  chimney  of  the  cottage  was  built  of ; 
only  to  be  done  in  a  more  sightly  manner.  Why,  you 
might  build  a  house  a  hundred  feet  long  for  a  few  hun- 
dred pounds,  that  would  really  be  a  place  fit  for  a  gen- 
tleman to  live  in,  and  which  some  new  fool  of  a  settler, 
with  plenty  of  money,  would  buy,  perhaps,  when  you 
went  back  to  England.  And  I  '11  tell  you  what  I  '11 
do,"  continued  Crab,  in  his  enthusiasm :  "  I  've  too 
many  sheep  by  a  great  deal  for  me  to  look  after.  I  '11 
sell  one  of  the  flocks,  and  that  shall  build  the  new  house 


276  A  Generous  Offer. 

for  jon,  and  I  '11  start  to  Salt  Pan  Plains  about  it  this 
very  day." 

"Indeed,"  said  I,  "you  will  do  no  such  thing." 

"  And  why  not,  pray;  can't  I  do  as  I  like  with  my 
own  sheep  ?" 

"  You  may  do  as  you  like  with  your  own  sheep,  but 
you  shall  not  sell  them  to  build  our  house ;  there  will 
be  about  fifteen  hundred  pounds  due  to  me  in  another 
month,  which  I  shall  not  lend  again,  so  that  I  shall 
have  plenty  of  money  for  house,  furniture,  and  all." 

"  Well,"  said  Crab,  considering  a  little,  "  perhaps  it 's 
as  well ;  it  will  be  all  the  same  in  the  end,  and  you 
would  only  lose  your  money  by  lending  it.  Very  well; 
the  sheep  are  sure  to  increase  if  you  leave  them  alone. 
So  now  to  find  a  good  stone-quarry." 

•'  Let  us  all  go,"  said  my  wife;  the  day  is  beautiful. 
I  want  to  see  Mrs.  Moss  on  the  other  side  of  the  river, 
and  you  can  help  us  over  Lucy's  bridge,  and  leave  us 
In  Mrs.  Moss's  Cottage." 

"  Come,  then,"  said  I;  "  where 's  my  fowling-piece? 
and.  Will,  do  you  take  yours." 

"Why,  what  on  earth,"  said  Crab,  "do  you  want 
with  your  guns  ?— you  are  not  going  a  mile  from  home." 

"Perhaps  not;  but  there's  no  harm  in  taking  them 
with  us." 

"My  fowling-piece  is  dirty,"  said  William;  "but 
Aere  's  a  musket  clean,  with  the  bayonet  all  ready  fixed; 
and  here's  a  cartouche-box  of  cartridces  " 

"  A  pretty  place  to  live  in  !"  said  Crab ;  "  to  go  a- 
seeking  for  a  stone-quarry  with  muskets  and  fixed  bayo- 
nets !" 

"  It's  always  best  to  bo  prepared,"  said  I;   "and,  to 


Precautionary  Measures.   277 

my  thinking,  precaution  betokens  courage,  as  it  shows 
the  calcuktiou  of  danger,  and  the  predetermination  to 
face  it." 

It  will  be  seen  that  it  was  well,  on  this  occasion,  that 
we  did  not  leave  our  arms  behind  us. 


Stone-quarries — Manner  of  Gardening  bj'  young  Ladies  in  new 
Colonies — A  Stranger — Miss  Betsy  suddenly  becomes  scientific 
respecting  Stone-quarries  and  other  matters — The  large  Ants  re- 
sent the  intrusion  on  their  territories — Wild  cattle  hunting — A 
young  Bull  gets  maddened,  and  galloping  into  the  Bush,  meets 
with  Betsy — Thornley  sees  her  peril  and  gives  her  over  for  lost. 

Van  Diemen's  Land  abounds  in  stone  of  all  sorts, 
and  especially  in  a  sort  of  stone  which  easily  splits  into 
flakes ;  it  is  commonly  used  to  build  the  chimney  of  a 
log-house,  where  bricks  and  lime  are  not  easily  to  be  had. 
It  is  not  so  sightly  as  bricks,  but  it  answers  the  purpose 
very  well,  and  almost  anything  in  the  shape  of  mud 
serves  for  a  cement.  There  was  plenty  of  this  sort  of 
stone  on  my  land ;  indeed,  too  much  of  it,  enough  to 
build  a  town,  and  on  one  rise  there  were  so  many  fine 
flat  slabs  of  stones  lying  on  the  surface,  that  it  made  one 
long  to  find  a  use  for  them. 

The  object  of  our  search  was  to  find  a  quarry  of  stone 
easy  to  be  worked,  near  the  intended  site  of  the  house, 
so  as  to  avoid  the  expense  and  trouble  of  carting.  But 
first  we  proceeded  in  a  body  to  tlie  other  side  of  the 
river,  passing  in  single  file  over  tlie  trunk  of  the  tree 
which  had  now  obtained  the  name  of  "  Luey's-bridge;" 
Crab  brought  up  the  rear,  with  a  crow-bar  over  his 
shoulder,  which  it  pleased  him  to  carry  on  this  occasion, 
for  the  purpose  of  raising  specimens  of  the  stone. 
(  278  ) 


A  Stranger,  279 

We  found  our  friends  busy  about  their  cottage,  which, 
at  Mrs.  Moss's  request,  our  diligent  neighbour  was  care- 
fully fortifying.  The  inside  was  hardly  large  enough  to 
contain  us  all,  so  we  proceeded  in  a  body  to  the  new 
garden,  which  Miss  Moss,  with  great  taste,  had  planned 
near  the  river. 

"Bless  me,"  said  Betsy,  ''why  I  declare  Miss  Moss 
has  f too  gardeners  to  assist  her;  there's  Mr.  Beresford 
sitting  on  the  log  of  a  tree,  working  dreadfully  hard  in- 
deed, and  explaining,  I  suppose,  something  or  other; 
and  there's  another  helping  him,  only  he's  too  far  off  to 
join  in  the  conversation,  with  a  gun  over  his  shoulder. 
That's  a  stranger ;  I  wonder  who  he  can  be  ?" 

Our  approach  interrupted  young  Beresford's  disserta- 
tion on  horticulture,  and  he  came  forward  with  a  very 
red  face  to  greet  us,  while  Miss  Moss  immediately  began 
to  rake  about  the  earth  desperately,  ''llather  cold 
work,"  said  I,  "  to  be  idle.  The  month  of  June  is  not 
the  season  to  sit  still  in  the  open  air.  A  good  fire,  and 
the  inside  of  a  house,  would  be  more  comfortable." 

"  I  thought  it  was  very  pleasant,"  said  Beresford. 

"So  it  appeared,"  said  I;  ''but  I  can't  stop  to  talk 
this  morning.  We  are  going  to  look  for  stone  to  build 
our  new  house.  Who  is  that  young  stranger  ?  He  is 
very  like  you." 

"  That's  my  brother.  You  know  I  have  been  expect- 
ing him  for  some  months.  He  came  up  here  a  week 
ago." 

"  What  is  his  age?     He  is  younger  than  you." 

"  Hf*  is  nineteen — four  years  younger  than  I  am.  He 
nas  got  terrible  notions  in  his  head  about  natives  and 
bush-rangers,  and  nothing  on  earth  will  induce  him  to 


280  Beeesford's  Excuse. 

part  with  his  gun :    he  eats,  and  drinks,  and  sleeps 
with  it." 

As  my  friend  thus  spoke,  the  stranger  advanced,  and 
saluted  us  with  a  very  good  air,  and  I  was  prepossessed 
in  his  favour  at  once,  by  his  modest  and  unassuming 
manner.  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  there  was  another 
of  the  party  who  regarded  him  with  favourable  eyes ; 
but  of  this  I  shall  have  to  speak  in  its  proper  place. 

''  Who's  for  a  walk  ?"  said  I.  "  Come,  Beresford,  man, 
don't  sit  on  that  log  all  day ;  a  brisk  walk  will  do  you 
good." 

' '  I  would  go  with  you  with  all  my  heart,  but  the 
truth  is,  I  have  promised  Miss  Moss  to  show  her  how  to 
trench  the  ground  for  Indian  corn." 

"Trench  ground  for  Indian  corn  in  June!  Well, 
that's  a  new  idea,  at  any  rate.  You  don't  mean  to  say 
that  you  are  going  to  sow  Indian  corn  in  the  middle  of 
winter  ?" 

''  Sow  it !  No — not  to  sow  it,  but  there's  nothing 
like  being  prepared  in  time." 

"Flight  there,"  said  I;  "and  as  you  like  to  prepare 
in  time,  had  you  not  better  come  with  us  and  look  out 
for  a  convenient  stone  quarry,  for  it  seems  to  mo  you'll 
soon  be  wanting  a  larger  house  than  your  present  one  ?" 

Miss  Moss,  at  this  recommendation,  worked  away  with 
her  rake  again  with  great  energy ;  but  she  had  the 
courage  to  say,  "The  surgeon,  Mr.  Beresford,  desired 
you  not  to  use  your  arm ;  and  you  know  he  said  that  any 
exertion  would  be  dangerous.  But  pray  don't  let  me 
keep  you  from  joining  your  friends.  I  have  plenty  to 
do  inside  the  cottage." 

So  saying,  she  bid  us  a  hasty  adieu,  and  we  proceedea 


QUAPRYINO    blONE    FOR    THE    NEW     HOOSE 


Hunt  FOR  Stone  Quarries.      281 

on  our  walk.  Bcresford  said  he  had  to  speak  to  Mr. 
Moss  about  some  sheep ;  but  his  brother,  he  added,  would 
be  glad  to  accompany  us  to  see  the  country. 

"Well,  then,"  said  I,  "you  can  stay  with  your  mo- 
ther, Betsy,  and  we  will  go  on  with  our  search." 

''I  should  like  to  go  with  you,"  said  Betsy;  "the 
day  is  so  fine,  and  I  am  so  fond  of  seeing  stone 
quarries." 

"  Fond  of  seeing  stone  quarries  !"  thought  I ;  "  what 
has  come  to  the  hussy ;  she  never  was  so  interested 
about  stone  quarries  before.  Come,  then,"  I  said,  "  and 
don't  complain  of  being  tired,  for  we  shall  make  a  long 
walk  of  it,  perhaps." 

We  re-crossed  the  river,  and  struck  into  the  bush, 
William  going  on  before,  and  I  and  Crab  following  se- 
dately behind,  while  Betsy  and  the  stranger  came  after 
us.  "We  soon  came  on  some  stone  quarries,  but  we  saw 
none  that  pleased  us.  There  were  so  many  that  we  were 
fastidious  about  them. 

"  J  know  of  a  capital  lot  of  stone  just  on  the  other 
side  of  that  little  green  hill,"  said  Crab,  "  if  it  would 
not  be  too  far  for  carting;  but  it  all  lies  on  the  surface, 
so  the  distance  of  cartage  would  be  saved  by  the  ease  of 
getting  at  the  stone." 

"  It  can  do  no  harm  for  us  to  see  it,"  said  I,  "  so  let 
us  push  on.  Betsy!  where  the  deuce  is  the  girl? 
Don't  loiter  behind  so,  or  you'll  be  lost  in  the  bush,  and 
your  new  acquaintance  would  not  be  able  to  help  you  in 
such  a  strait,  I  think,  eh  ?" 

"  Oh,  no  fear,  papa,  of  being  lost  in  the  bush,  close  at 
home.  I  have  more  fear  of  the  wild  cattle  that  the  men 
are  bringing  in  to-day." 


282  The  Ked  Ants. 

"Wild  cattle!"  said  George  Beresford;  "are  the 
cattle  then  so  wild  here?  are  they  savage  when  mo- 
lested?" 

"  Savage  !"  said  Crab,  "  there's  nothing  savage  about 
the  poor  things ;  but  they  are  angry  at  times,  and  so 
would  you  be  if  you  had  half  a  dozen  men  on  horseback 
riding  after  you  for  some  hours,  and  cracking  their  whips 
at  you  enough  to  deafen  a  gum-tree.  They  are  wildish 
a  bit  now  and  then,  and  when  there's  a  mob  of  them 
rampaging  along  they  can't  stand  on  ceremony.  You 
must  get  out  of  their  way,  that's  all.  A  little  more  to 
the  left,  master,  if  you  please ;  no  need  to  go  over  a  hill 
when  you  can  go  round  it.  There's  no  end  to  hills  in 
this  country." 

We  walked  on  till  we  had  gone  about  two  miles  from 
home,  when  we  came  upon  a  splendid  lot  of  stones,  of 
all  shapes  and  sizes,  and  Crab,  in  his  zeal,  began  to  use 
his  crow-bar  to  heave  up  a  slab  here  and  there,  to  see 
what  was  under  it.  Our  new  acquaintance,  to  manifest 
his  desire  to  render  assistance  in  our  search,  took  the 
crow-bar,  and  worked  away  with  great  vigour  in  an  irre- 
gular pit  of  stones,  which  looked  of  an  inviting  quality. 
He  had  not  proceeded  far  in  his  task,  before  he  uttered 
a  sharp  cry,  and  began  to  dance  about. 

"  What's  the  matter  ?"  said  William;  "  has  the  crow- 
bar fallen  on  your  toe  ?" 

"  Toe  !  it's  not  my  toe  !  I've  been  bit  by  a  snake  !" 

"  A  snake  !  It's  strange  that  we  did  not  observe  it ! 
But  I  see  ;  it's  no  snake,  it's  the  red  ants  that  you  have 
disturbed,  and  one  has  given  you  a  nip.  I'll  soon  bring 
some  more  of  them  out." 

So  saying,  he  took  the  crow-bar,  and,  peering  about, 


Their  Hostility.  283 

struck  it  lightly  at  the  entrance  of  the  passage  several 
times.  Immediately  a  swarm  of  these  prodigious  ants 
sallied  out,  elevating  their  nippers,  and  showing  signs 
of  anger  and  irritation.  These  red  ants  are  about  an  inch 
and  a  half  long,  very  bold  and  fierce  in  their  nature,  and 
they  do  not  hesitate  to  attack  any  intruder  on  their  do- 
mains. About  four  years  before  this  time,  one  of  my 
men,  who  was  employed  in  raising  stone  about  a  half 
a  mile  from  the  house,  was  obliged  to  abandon  the 
quarry  from  the  numbers  and  determined  hostility  of 
these  courageous  and  daring  creatures. 

We,  who  knew  what  was  coming,  got  out  of  the  way, 
but  our  friend,  with  the  curiosity  of  a  new  comer, 
waited  in  the  pit,  to  examine  the  appearance  and  motions 
of  this  curious  army  of  ants.  He  did  not  stay  there 
long,  however,  for  the  angry  ants  attacked  him  in  a  mo- 
ment, and,  biting  his  shins,  and  crawling  under  his 
clothes,  set  him  a-dancing  in  a  manner  that  did  infinite 
credit  to  his  agility.  The  pleasure  of  this  novel  sen- 
sation was  not  increased  by  the  loud  laughter  which  ac- 
companied his  capers  from  all — all  excepting  my  daugh- 
ter Betsy,  whose  usual  love  of  mirth  had  become  sub- 
dued, from   politeness   and  in  courtesy  to   a  stranger. 

"  For  heaven's  sake,  William,"  she  called  out, "  do  help 
Mr.  Beresford  ;  those  horrid  ants  will  bite  him  to  death." 

"  I'll  fire  at  'em,"  said  William,  "  if  he  will  only 
stand  still  and  let  me  pick  'cm  oiF  one  by  one.  But, 
never  mind,  they  only  bite,  and  they  are  not  venomous — 
at  least  much — and  I  never  knew  any  harm  come  from 
their  bites.  Our  Bob  has  been  biWen  by  them  all  over, 
and  he's  used  to  them  now,  he  says,  and,  upon  my  word, 
I  think  the  ants  learned  to  know  him,  for  they  left  oft 
attackinc  him  after  a  bit." 


28-4  Betsy's  Absence. 

"This  will  do,  Crab,"  said  I ;  "  this  is  capital  stone, 
and  plenty  of  it,  and  it's  all  down  hill,  or  nearly  so,  to 
the  new  house.  So  here  we  will  fix  for  our  quarry. 
And  now  we  will  go  home." 

''Not  home  yet,  papa;  Mr.  Beresford  wants  to  see 
the  falls  of  the  Clyde." 

"  Well,  do  you  and  William  go  with  him,  and  show  him 
the  falls ;  but  they  are  little  worth  seeing  in  June ;  the 
spring-time,  in  September  or  October,  is  the  time  for 
the  falls,  after  the  rains ;  then  they  are  a  sight  worth 
seeing." 

Leaving  the  young  party  to  continue  their  walk,  I 
and  Crab  turned  our  steps  homewards,  as  I  expected  a 
herd  of  wild  cattle  to  be  driven  into  the  stock-yard 
during  the  day.  When  we  got  home,  I  found  that  my 
wife  had  returned.  She  blamed  me  for  letting  Betsy  go 
so  far  from  home,  in  these  troublous  times,  as  she  called 
them ;  but  I  told  her  there  was  no  fear  of  bush-rangers 
or  natives  in  the  daytime  so  near  a  settlement,  and  we 
followed  such  occupations  as  demanded  our  attention. 
When  the  time  had  elapsed,  however,  for  Betsy's  return 
home,  my  wife  began  to  be  uneasy  at  her  absence,  and 
urged  me  to  go  in  search  of  her." 

"  She  is  gone  into  some  friend's  house  on  the  way," 
said  I ;  "  there's  no  cause  for  being  uneasy ;  William  is 
with  her,  and  the  falls  are  not  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from 
a  settler's  house." 

But  all  I  could  say  could  not  calm  my  wife's  uneasi- 
ness, for  her  late  troubles  had  made  her  timid  and 
nervous,  till  I  begaa  to  be  uneasy  myself.  I  took  my 
double-barrelled  fowling-piece,  and  bidding  two  of  my 
men,  whom  I  could  trust,  to  come  with  me,  I  set  out  in 
the  direction  of  the  falls. 


A  R  E 1 V  A  L  OF  Wild   Cattle.      285 

I  had  not  proceeded  a  hundred  yards  before  I  thought 
I  heard  the  distant  lowing  of  cattle,  and  presently  after 
the  cracking  of  the  hunters'  whips  apprised  me  that  the 
herd  which  I  had  been  expecting  all  day  was  approach- 
ing the  stock-yard. 

Judging  that  an  additional  rider  would  be  of  use  iu 
forcing  them  into  the  yard,  I  returned  to  the  hut,  near 
which  temporary  stables  had  been  erected,  and  putting  a 
saddle  on  the  horse  that  was  there — the  two  others  were 
out  after  the  cattle — I  was  soon  in  the  midst  of  the  sport. 

The  forcing  the  cattle  into  the  stock-yard  is  the  most 
difficult  part  of  the  task,  as  they  are  apt  to  break  away 
when  they  scent  the  enclosure,  and  to  divide  in  separate 
mobs,  which  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  get  together 
again,  as  they  fly  off  in  all  directions,  and  become  savage 
and  furious  as  they  are  hard  pressed  by  the  shouts  and 
whips  of  the  huntsmen. 

In  collecting  them  from  their  various  runs,  it  is  the 
practice  for  three  to  five  or  six  horsemen  to  set  out  to- 
gether at  the  earliest  break  of  day.  The  horsemen  are 
provided  with  a  roughly-made  whip,  with  a  leather  thong, 
and  a  peculiar  sort  of  lash  at  the  end  of  it,  made  from  an 
old  silk  handkerchief,  which  is  the  best  material  for  pro- 
ducing a  loud  crack. 

To  make  this  lash,  two  strips  of  an  old  silk  handker- 
chief, about  six  inches  long,  arc  wetted,  and  twisted  tight 
separately,  and  then  twisted  tightly  together.  It  is  sur- 
prising to  those  who  have  never  tried  this  peculiar  lash, 
to  hear  the  astonishing  loud  crack  that  it  will  make.  It 
is  the  noise  of  these  cracking  whips  that  frightens  the 
cattle  into  the  required  direction;  and  without  these 
whips  it  would  be  useless  to  attempt  to  drive  them. 


286        Mode  of  Capturixg  Them. 

Thus  provided,  the  hunters  proceed  to  the  spots  where 
they  divine  that  cattle  have  rested  the  preceding  night, 
observing  especially  the  brows  of  hills  sheltered  from  the 
wind.  When  they  see  a  mob  of  cattle,  a  dozen,  more  or 
less,  they  note  the  spot,  and  pass  on,  taking  care  not  to 
disturb  them,  and  continue  their  search  after  more. 

In  this  way  they  proceed,  spreading  themselves  over 
the  country,  and  going  twenty  miles,  perhaps,  from  home, 
noting  the  different  little  mobs  here  and  there  on  their 
passage.  They  then  gently  urge  the  mob  farthest  off 
towards  the  mob  nearer  home,  and  then  urge  the  mob  so 
joined  to  the  next  one,  and  so  on. 

After  a  little  while,  the  cattle  begin  to  suspect  mis- 
chief, and  then  the  furious  riding  begins,  and  the  smaller 
the  number,  the  more  difficult  it  is  to  drive  them.  A 
horseman  takes  each  flank  of  the  mob,  and  the  rest  of 
the  hunters  take  charge  of  the  cattle  from  behind. 
Every  now  and  then  the  cattle  break  off  to  the  right  or 
left,  and  then  the  horseman,  with  loud  shouts,  pursues 
them,  and  with  the  cracking  of  his  whip  drives  them 
back  to  the  main  body.  Sometimes  the  whole  body  of 
cattle  will  make  a  rush  to  escape,  and  then  the  utmost 
efforts  of  the  hunters  are  necessary  to  prevent  them  from 
dispersing. 

The  country  being  in  a  state  of  nature,  and  for  the 
most  part  covered  with  dead  timber,  the  sort  of  riding 
may  be  imagined.  Copses  are  dashed  through,  dead 
trunks  of  trees  arc  continually  to  be  leaped,  for  the 
herd  must  be  followed  and  kept  in  the  right  direction  at 
all  hazards  to  man  and  horse  ;  and  whatever  the  country, 
it  must  be  taken,  up  hill  or  down  hill,  up  precipice  or 
down  precipice. 


Its  Exciting   Nature.  287 

Sometimes  the  cattle  take  a  direction  round  the  brow 
of  a  steep  mountain,  with  a  wall  of  turf  on  your  left 
hand,  and  a  precipice  of  a  hundred  feet  or  two  on  your 
right !  No  matter;  on  you  must  go;  hooting,  shouting, 
and  cracking  the  never-resting  whip,  and  never  thinking 
of  the  danger  till  you  have  passed  it. 

Talk  of  fox-hunting  !  It  is  nothing  compared  with  wild 
cattle-hunting  !  and  as  to  the  excitement,  cattle-hunting 
is  ten  times  more  exciting,  but  it  must  be  added,  incom- 
parably more  dangerous  !  Besides,  in  cattle-huntiugyou 
see  your  game,  and  a  multitude  of  wild  cattle  in  a  state 
of  fury  from  hard  driving  is  a  grand  and  imposing  spec- 
tacle. I  say  nothing  of  the  additional  enlivemcnt  of  be- 
coming the  pursued  instead  of  the  pursuer,  from  some 
devil  of  a  bull  taking  it  into  his  head  to  resent  the  aifront 
put  upon  his  independence.  Then  the  chase  assumes  a 
very  different  complexion,  and  cool  must  be  the  man  and 
steady  must  be  the  rider  to  escape  when  the  wild  bull  is 
determined,  and  inclined  to  be  vicious. 

I  remember  one  of  my  men  was  chased  between  the 
Shannon  and  the  Clyde  for  ten  miles  on  end  by  a  furi- 
ous bullock,  who  kept  his  horse  at  the  stretch  of  his 
speed  the  whole  way,  till  the  rider  came  to  a  deep  part 
of  the  Clyde,  when  he  dashed  in,  glad  to  escape  from 
his  tormentor  any  way.  When  a  pretty  good  number 
are  collected  in  this  way,  they  are  more  easily  driven, 
as  they  arc  in  each  other's  way,  and  impede  each  other's 
motions ;  but  they  are  the  more  dangerous  when  they 
make  a  rush  at  you.  The  only  thing  to  be  done  then 
is  to  ride  with  all  your  speed  to  the  right  or  left,  and 
keep  up  with  them  in  a  parallel  line  till  their  speed  is 
spent ;  then  the  work  has  to  be  done  again. 


283  Successful  Chase. 

On  the  present  occasion,  my  men  had  collected  a  mob 
of  above  a  hundred,  some  of  which  belonged  to  other 
parties,  and  as  it  was  winter-time,  and  the  cattle  were 
not  exhausted  by  the  heat,  as  they  sometimes  are  in 
summer — for  I  have  known  a  fat  bullock  to  lie  down 
when  thus  driven  from  exhaustion,  and  I  have  not  been 
able  to  make  him  get  up  even  by  whipping  him — they 
were  in  fine  condition  for  a  run,  and  I  soon  saw  that 
there  would  be  more  than  ordinary  difficulty  in  getting 
them  into  the  stock-yard,  which  was  less  than  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  from  the  building  where  I  was  temporarily 
residing. 

We  were  five  horsemen  in  all;  three  of  my  own 
horses,  and  two  of  my  neighbour's,  who,  from  love  of 
the  sport,  had  joined  in  the  hunt.  We  had  just  got 
them  to  the  entrance  of  the  yard,  where  they  stood 
hesitating  and  obstinate,  when  a  fine  young  bull  uttered 
a  savage  cry,  and,  darting  between  me  and  another 
rider,  galloped  into  the  plain,  followed  by  the  whole  herd. 

It  was  quite  a  narrow  escape  for  both  of  us,  and  we 
were  only  just  in  time  in  avoiding  the  rush  of  the  infu- 
riated animals.  But  we  were  too  well  used  to  the  work 
to  be  baffled,  and  in  a  short  time  we  had  them  all  under 
command,  though  it  required  all  the  shouting  and  whip- 
cracking  that  we  could  raise  to  urge  them  to  the  entrance 
again.  As  it  was,  I  think  we  should  have  lost  them, 
had  it  not  been  for  two  cows  belonging  to  our  tame  herd, 
which,  fortunately,  this  time,  were  in  front,  and  they 
being  used  to  the  yard,  cantered  in  to  avoid  the  pressure 
from  behind,  and  then  another  simultaneous  shout  on 
our  parts,  and  a  renewed  cracking  of  whips  forced  them 
all  in ;  then  up  bars,  and  we  had  them  safe. 

The  young  bull,  however,  did  not  approve  of  the  trick, 


Terrible   Apprehension.         289 

and  he  bellowed  and  galloped  about  the  yard  in  a  state 
of  perfect  fury,  lashing  his  tail  about,  and  plunging  his 
horns  into  the  groufid  till  he  got  quite  mad.  In  his 
anger  he  made  a  dash  at  the  heavy  logs  of  which  the 
yard  was  built,  and  butting  his  head  against  them,  he 
made -the  whole  stockade  vibrate  with  the  concussion. 
Finding  it  too  strong  to  break  through,  he  bellowed  and 
plunged  about  with  increased*  rage,  when  suddenly  he 
made  a  run  at  the  logs,  and  with  one  desperate  bound 
he  leaped  right  over  them,  although  they  were  nearly 
eight  feet  high,  and  dashed  into. the  bush. 

I  admired  the  vigour  and  determination  of  the  ani- 
mal, and  as  we  did  not  want  him,  I  let  him  go  his  way, 
when  it  suddenly  struck  me  that  the  course  which  ho 
had  taken  was  the  same  which  my  daughter  would  be 
pursuing  on  her  way  home.  I  communicated  my  fears 
to  ray  two  men,  who  were  standing  by  me,  and,  instantly 
seeing  the  danger,  they  mounted  their  horses  without 
delay,  and  we  proceeded  after  the  furious  animal,  intend- 
ing to  head  him,  so  as  to  turn  him  away  from  the  path 
where  he  might  do  mischief. 

The  short  time  that  elapsed  between  his  escape  and 
my  thought  of  its  danger  was  sufficient  to  enable  him  to 
get  considerably  ahead  of  us,  I  took  the  way  to  the 
right,  being  best  mountc^d ;  and  my  horse  being  fresh,  I 
put  him  to  the  top  of  his  speed,  riding  over  everjthing 
in  my  way  in  my  terrible  anxiety. 

A  couple  of  miles  were  passed  in  almost  less  time  than 
I  have  taken  to  relate  it,  when  my  worst  fears  were  re- 
alized !  I  beheld  the  infuriated  animal,  rendered  more 
furious  by  our  pursuit  and  our  cries,  with  its  horns  near 
the  ground,  in  the  act  of  rushing  towards  ray  daughter 
]0 


290  Miraculous  Escape. 

Betsy,  who,  with  my  son  and  the  young  stranger,  seemed 
for  the  moment  stupified  with  horror  at  the  suddenness 
and  the  imminence  of  the  danger. 

The  red  ribands  of  the  unfortunate  bonnet  about  which 
poor  Betsy  had  been  so  facetious  a  few  days  before,  as 
being  honoured  with  a  cart  and  four  bullocks  for  its 
special  conveyance  from  Hobart  Town,  were  streaming 
in  the  wind,  and  whether  or  not  that  colour  is  really 
hateful  to  cattle,  I  do  not  know,  but  in  the  present  in- 
stance the  raging  bull  seemed  to  me  to  disregard  her 
two  companions,  and  with  an  appalling  bellowing  that 
made  the  woods  re-echo,  and  filled  me  with  a  heart-rend- 
ing fear,  which  I  cannot  describe  in  words,  it  rushed  to 
the  spot  where  my  poor  girl,  in  an  agony  of  terror,  with 
eyes  fixed  and  hands  uplifted,  had  fallen  on  her  knees 
before  him. 

The  furious  brute  rushed  on,  and  I  had  already  given 
up  my  dear  child  for  lost,  when  I  saw  the  young  stranger 
with  a  bound  leap  forward  between  them; — ^instantly 
falling  on  one  knee,  and  taking  a  rapid  but  cool  aim,  he 
fired — the  ball  with  which  his  musket  was  loaded  struck 
the  animal  between  its  horns,  and  the  huge  bull  sud- 
denly tumbled  over  and  over  on  the  grass,  striking 
down,  in  its  plunging  course,  our  heroic  preserver,  and, 
as  I  afterwards  found,  breaking  his  musket  to  pieces. 

Almost  at  the  same  moment  I  reached  the  spot,  and 
at  the  report  of  the  musket,  and  the  fall  of  the  bull,  my 
well-trained  and  intelligent  horse  immediately  checked 
himself,  and  stood  snorting  with  inquiring  ears.  For 
some  seconds  no  one  stirred ;  the  bull  lay  on  the  ground 
dead ;  my  daughter  knelt  with  her  hands  clasped,  still 
in  the  attitude  of  fear,  :iiid  George  Beresford  remained 
motionless  by  her  side. 


CljnptH  Cinrntii-fnnrtji. 

The   Stranger   saves   Betsy's   life — The  Surgeon  appears  again — 
Thornley  sets  off  for  Hobart  Town. 

The  two  horsemen  who  had  accompanied  me  from  the 
stock-yard  now  dismounted,  and  tlieir  advance  broke-the 
spell  of  fear  and  doubt  which  for  a  moment  entranced  my 
faculties.  I  threw  myself  from  my  horse,  and  clasped 
my  daughter  in  my  arms.  Grasping  my  hand  convul- 
sively, she  rose  from  her  knees,  and  turned  to  the  spot 
where  our  young  friend  was  lying  insensible  and  pale. 
Betsy  did  not  speak,  but  kneeling  down  by  the  body, 
clasped  her  hands,  and  looked  up  to  us  appcalingly. 

*'  Hide  hard  to  the  surgeon's ;  it's  not  half  a  mile  off,'' 
said  William  to  one  of  the  men.  "  Give  him  your  horse 
to  come  back  on." 

In  less  than  five  minutes  the  surgeon  was  with  us. 
The  young  man  still  remained  insensible. 

*'We  must  bleed  him  instantly,"  said  the  surgeon. 
"  Raise  him  up.  Hold  his  arm  out — so.  Cut  open  the 
sleeve  of  his  coat ;  no  time  for  ceremony.  There,  that 
will  do;  he  is  all  right;  you'll  see  he  will  come  to 
presently.     I  hope  there  are  no  bones  broken." 

''Good  heavens!"  said  Betsy,  "he  will  bleed  to 
death." 

"No  fear  of  that;  do  him  good;  very  good  blood; 
body  in  good  state — so  it  ought  to  be  at  his  age.  There 
he  is — coming  to — beautifully.     Now  we'll  bind  his  arm 

(291) 


292        The  Stranger  Revives. 

up.  Who  has  got  something  to  bind  it  with  ?  Ah  !  this 
red  riband  will  do  very  well.  But  you'll  spoil  your 
smart  bonnet.  That's  it — and  I  declare  here's  .young 
Thornley  has  got  a  pannikin  of  water  for  him.  You're 
a  thoughtful  lad,  and  no  doubt  this  young  fellow  will  do 
as  much  for  you  another  time." 

''  Thank  ye,"  said  Will;  "I  hope  I  shall  not  have  to 
trouble  him.  I  wish  he  had  let  me  shoot  the  bull, 
though ;  but  Betsy  was  right  before  me,  and  I  was  afraid 
of  hitting  her  if  I  fired." 

^'  You  needn't  be  sorry  that  you  didn't  kill  the  bull, 
Master  William,"  said  one  of  the  men;  "there's  Mr. 
Crab  will  be  in  a  terrible  taking  about  it ;  it  was  his 
favourite  one  of  the  herd,  and  a  nice,  tight,  clean-made 
cretur  he  was,  poor  fellow." 

."  That's  right,  Mr.  what's  his  name  ?"  said  the 

Burgeon. 

"  Mr.  George  Beresford,"  said  Betsy ;  "  he  is  Mr. 
Beresford's  brother." 

"  Oh !  the  brother  that's  going  to  be  married  to  Lucy 
Moss : — well,  then,  Mr.  Beresford,  how  do  you  find  your- 
self?    Pain  anywhere  ?" 

"I  feel  a  little  faint— where's  the  bull?" 

"  There  he  is;  but  I  hope  he  is  not  only  stunned  too; 
perhaps  he'll  start  up  and  give  us  a  poke.  Let  us  ex- 
amine him  a  bit.  lie's  quite  dead.  Struck  between  the 
horns !  a  lucky  shot,  by  George  !  You  have  had  a  nar- 
row escape,  some  of  you." 

"  A  capital  shot,  sir;  but  Mr.  Crab  will  not  like  it.  I 
really  don't  know  what  he  will  do !  this  bull  was  such  a 
pet  of  his  !  He  saved  it  between  four  and  five  years  ago, 
from  being  killed— like.  I  know  I  shouldn't  like  to  bo 
the  one  to  tell  him  of  it." 


Departure  for  IIobart  Town.  1^93 

"  Rather  an  odd  animal  to  make  a  pet  of;  but  every 
one  to  his  taste.  Now,  my  young  friend ;  I  recommend 
you  to  go  home,  and  go  to  bed,  and  lie  still  for  a  day  or 
so.  There  arc  no  bones  broken,  but  you  may  have  re- 
ceived more  injury  than  appears  at  first,  and  the  best 
way  is  to  guard  against  it,  to  avoid  fever  and  so  forth. 
But  what's  the  matter  with  the  young  lady,  eh  ?  Oh  ! 
fright  J  well,  it  is  allowable  for  young  ladies  to  be  fright- 
ened. Let  me  feel  your  pulse.  There,  shake  hands 
with  the  gentleman — '  your  preserver,'  as  you  call  him. 
Proper  to  be  grateful :  very  right  feeling ; — pulse  not 
quite  right,  though  !  Odd  sort  of  fluttering  !  There — 
that  will  do,  young  gentleman — you  needn't  be  shaking 
hands  all  day  !     Get  home  and  keep  quiet." 

So  saying,  our  excellent  and  kind-hearted  surgeon 
took  his  leave,  and  I  with  Betsy  and  William  returned 
home.  On  my  arrival  there,  I  found  a  letter  fur  me 
which  had  been  sent  express  from  Hobart  Town,  re- 
quiring my  presence  as  a  witness  on  the  approaching  trial 
of  the  bush-rangers  who  had  been  captured  on  our  late 
expedition.  As  the  matter  admitted  of  no  delay,  I  imme- 
diately prepared  for  my  departure,  intending  to  ride 
about  eighteen  miles  before  night,  and  sleep  on  the  road. 
Giving  such  directions  as  were  necessary  in  my  absence, 
I  slung  my  fowling-piece  over  my  shoulder,  and  set  oflF 
on  my  journey. 


The  facetious  Attorney — Colonial  mode  of  getting  rid  of  a  Wife — 
Thornley  attends  an  execution  which  makes  him  Sick — he  re- 
turns homewards — A  Chase  after  Sheep — Encounter  with  a  bush- 
ranger. 

I  SLEPT  that  night  at  the  Grreen  Ponds,  and  met  with 
nothing  remarkable.  I  got  into  town  about  four  o'clock 
next  day,  and  ascertained  that  the  trial  of  the  bush- 
rangers was  to  take  place  in  a  few  days. 

As  I  had  nothing  particular  to  do,  I  amused  myself 
with  walking  about,  and  I  looked  at  the  bit  of  land  that 
I  had  bought  a  month  or  two  before,  and  it  seemed  to 
me  that  it  would  be  better  if  I  could  have  the  hundred 
pounds  which  I  had  given  for  it  in  my  own  pocket  again ; 
but  I  could  not  find  any  one  who  would  give  the  money 
for  it  down ;  there  were  plenty  who  would  have  bought 
it  on  credit  at  nearly  double  the  price,  but  I  did  not  like 
that  way  of  dealing ;  so  after  walking  over  it  very  discon- 
tentedly, I  came  back  to  my  inn  in  no  very  good  humour. 

I  found  a  friend  of  mine,  the  sheriff,  waiting  for  me, 
who  was  terribly  out  of  spirits  at  having  to  attend  th©. 
execution  of  four  men  the  next  morning,  one  of  them  for 
sheep-stealing,  and  two  for  bush-ranging;  the  fourth 
man's  case  was  a  remarkable  one,  which,  as  I  find  it  noted 
in  my  journal,  I  will  relate  as  illustrative  of  the  manners 
and  customs  of  the  colony  at  that  period. 
(294) 


The  Lawyer's  Story.  295 

I  dined  with  the  saerill"  that  day,  and  the  attorney, 
Mr.  Kasay,  who  defended  the  murderer,  happened  to  bo 
present,  and  he  was  very  merry  with  the  story,  the  more 
BO  as  the  sheriff  being  out  of  sorts,  the  attorney  good 
naturedly  wanted  to  raise  his  spirits  with  stories  of  mur- 
ders and  suicides,  and  such  like. 

I  shall  endeavour  to  give  the  story  in  the  lawyer's 
own  words,  for  I  confess  that,  horrible  as  it  was,  I  could 
not  help  feeling  an  inclination  to  laugh  at  the  way  in 
which  it  was  told.  But  lawyers  get  callous  to  scenes 
of  crime  and  misery- from  their  professional  habits,  as 
surgeons  come  to  disregard  the  cries  of  a  patient  during 
an  operation. 

"  It  was  a  very  bad  case,"  said  the  lawyer,  ''  as  I  told 
my  client  from  the  first;  but  of  course  it  was  my  duty 
to  do  what  I  could  for  him.  He  followed  the  trade  of 
a  pork-butcher,  and  one  day,  when  he  had  a  quarrel  with 
some  other  fellow — he  was  a  baker — he  took  his  knife, 
with  which  he  was  accustomed  to  operate  on  his  pigs, 
and  '  more  suo'  stuck  it  into  his  acquaintance,  and  ripped 
him  up  '  secundum  artcm.' 

"  He  must  have  been  a  clever  fellow  at  his  trade,  for 
the  stickee  didn't  need  a  second  cut;  he  died,  of  course^ 
and  my  gentleman  was  duly  committed,  and  all  that.  I 
tried  hard  for  him  at  the  trial  to  get  it  turned  into  man- 
slaughter, on  the  ground  that  the  sticking  was  not  done 
with  '  premeditation ;'  for,  as  we  argued,  his  knife  being 
in  his  hand,  which  was  a  sort  of  implement  of  trade, 
he  couldn  't  help,  from  habit  (we  are  all  creatures  of 
habit),  from  sticking  it  into  anything  in  his  way  that 
seemed  to  want  it. 

"  But  it  wouldn  't  do.     The  judge  was  as  crusty  as  if^ 


296  Parson  Jorawaigh. 

he  had  supped  off  pork-chops  the  night  hefore,  and  the 
jury  were  tired,  and  wanted  to  get  their  dinner.  So 
they  soon  made  up  their  minds  about  it,  and  we  were 
found  guilty  of  course.  So  my  man  was  marched  off 
to  the  condemned  cell  to  wait  till  they  were  ready  to 
hang  him ;  no  pleasant  contemplation :  but  it's  nothing 
when  you're  used  to  it. 

"It's  curious  what  a  revulsion  it  makes  in  a  man's 
feelings  when  he  is  found  guilty.  I  've  had  many  a  fine 
fellow  through  my  hands,  who  had  been  as  dashing  a 
chap  as  you  'd  wish  to  see,  up  to  that  point,  and  with  all 
the  impudence  of  oppressed  innocence;  but  when  the 
foreman  turns  up  the  whites  of  his  eyes — (you  may  al- 
ways tell  what 's  coming  by  their  sanctified  looks) — and 
whispers  out  that  little  word  '  Guilty !'  Lord  !  what  a 
change  comes  over  the  brave  fellow  in  the  dock  ;  but  all 
this  is  nothing ;  I  shall  come  to  my  story  presently. 

"  You  know  Parson  Jorawaigh  ?  He 's  the  man  to 
stir  'em  up !  Only  give  him  a  little  time,  sir,  and  he  '11 
make  a  poor  devil  turn  himself  completely  inside  out 
— what  the  Scotch  call  *  making  a  clean  breast  of  it !' 

"  Well,  sir,  my  friend  the  pork-butcher  grew  very  re- 
ligious after  he  was  condemned,  as  I  have  observed  most 
people  do  when  they  are  going  to  be  hanged  j  and  you 
know  the  motto  among  the  convicts,  '  Never  give  away 
a  chance.' 

"The  parson  stuck  to  him,  and,  as  the  gaoler  said,  put 
the  poor  wretch  into  such  a  stew,  that  he  declared  pri- 
vately to  him  that  he  would  prefer  being  hanged — much, 
very  much  prefer  it — to  having  any  more  of  the  parson's 
jaw.  But  the  parson  is  nr)t  the  man  to  neglect  his  duty, 
and  he  kept  walking  in  to  him  day  after  day,  till  at  last 


A  Modern   Bluebeard.  '297 

he  got  the  *  penitent,'  as  he  called  him  tome,  to  confess; 
and  a  pretty  confession  it  was  ! 

"  This  was  his  fourth  murder !  Yes,  sir,  positively  his 
fourth  !  And  who  do  you  think  were  the  victims  of  the 
organ  of  dcstmctiveness,  so  largely  developed — for  it  all 
goes  by  bumps,  you  know,  now-a-days — in  the  head  of 
this  modern  Bluebeard?  His  three  wives !  that  is,  he 
confessed  to  three — how  many  more  he  killed  one  really 
can't  say;  but  the  parson  was  satisfied  with  his  confes- 
sing to  three,  and  '  talked'  to  him  no  more. 

"  But  the  most  curious  part  of  the  story  is  the  way  in 
which  he  did  it.  Upon  my  life,  I  'm  not  sure  that  it 's 
right  to  tell  the  secret;  there  are  so  many  ready  to 
take  advantage  of  it.  But,  however,  as  we  are  among 
friends,  I  '11  trust  to  your  discretion,  never  to  repeat  it 
to  a  married  man.  It  was  very  ingenious ;  quite  origi- 
nal. Well,  we  live  and  learn.  It  would  make  the  for- 
tune of  a  man  in  London  for  a  tragedy,  or  a  farce;  only 
it  is  so  very  dreadful. 

*'  Ilis  plan,  sir,  was  this.  Ilis  wife  got  drunk,  or  he 
made  her  so — all  the  same  thing  :  when  she  was  in  that 
happy  state,  what  was  more  natural  than  that  she  should 
throw  herself  on  the  bed,  face  downwards  ?  and  if  she 
neglected  to  place  herself  in  that  position,  why  it  was 
very  easy  to  turn  her  over,  eh  ?  My  gentleman  then 
clapped  a  pillow  on  her  head,  and  sat  upon  it, '  as  long,'  as 
he  expressed  himself,  <  as  he  thought  was  necessary  !' 

"  Horrible  !  isn't  it  ?  To  think  what  some  men  will 
do  to  get  rid  of  their  wives  I  And  the  rascal  confessed, 
that  as  he  sat  there,  he  used  to  smoke  his  pipe,  '  to  take 
oflF  the  dulness,'  as  he  said.  It's  very  dreadful  to  think 
of !    But  really  there's  something  droll  in  the  idea ! 


298       His  Crimes  Terminated. 

Not  but  that  I  feel  the  atrocity  of  such  an  act — although 
the  woman  was  his  wife — it  was  a  cool  trick — very  cool ! 

"  When  the  job  was  done,  as  he  confessed,  he  went 
to  the  public-house  hard  by,  and  staid  there  drinking 
and  smoking,  till  the  news  came  that  his  poor  wife  was 
found  dead!  But  all  seemed  fair  and  square.  It 
seemed  that  the  woman  had  got  drunk ! — natural 
enough — had  fallen  down  on  the  bed  with  her  face  on 
the  pillow — got  smothered  ! — natural  enough ; — the  hus- 
band did  not  express  any  particular  sorrow  at  the 
event — natural  enough.  All  seemed  right,  and  while 
some  pitied  him  on  account  of  the  melancholy  occur- 
rence, others  congratulated  him  on  having  got  rid  of  a 
drunken  wife. 

"  So  after  a  short  time  he  married  another.  She  went 
off  the  same  way.  He  was  a  man  of  nerve,  however, 
and  he  tried  a  third.  Same  as  before.  '  The  neigh- 
bours did  talk,'  he  said,  about  this  last  melancholy  oc- 
currence ','  but  he  put  on  a  suit  of  mourning,  bran-new, 
with  black  crape  round  his  hat,  and  attended  evening 
prayer  in  his  neighbourhood,  regularly,  so  he  was  con- 
sidered a  model  of  a  husband,  but  peculiarly  unfor- 
tunate. 

"  How  many  more  wives  he  might  have  murdered  it 
is  impossible  to  tell,  had  not  this  last  misfortune  stopped 
his  fun.  Parson  Jorawaigh  says  he  is  the  most  penitent 
lamb  he  ever  had  the  happiness  to  save  !  but  for  my 
part,  I  don't  think  much  of  the  penitence  of  a  rogue 
going  to  be  hanged  !  And  if  the  parson  has  not  more 
luck  with  his  miserable  soul  than  I  have  had  with  his 
miserable  body,  I  must  say  that  my  friend  the  pork- 
butcher  will  be  in  a  worse  mess  after  he  is  hanged  than 


Trifling  Remarks.  299 

before.  However,  to-morrow  he  will  have  a  sheriff's 
breakfast,  eh  !  old  boy,  a  hearty  choke  and  a  caper  !  and 
you  will  have  the  particular  satisfaction  of  ridding  the 
world  of  a  vagabond  !  Smothering  his  wives  was  bad 
enough ! — still  there  might  have  been  some  excuse  for 
that — but  killing  a  baker  was  going  too  far,  particularly 
in  this  place,  where  bakers  are  wanted." 

The  sheriff,  who  was  a  mild  and  gentlemanlike  man, 
of  great  benevolence  of  character,  and  of  rather  a  nervous 
temperament,  did  not  relish  the  vivacious  remarks  of  the 
facetious  attorney.  I  should  be  sorry  to  be  the  means 
of  exhibiting  the  latter  personage  in  any  light  that 
might  seem  unfavourable,  which  would  be  contrary  to 
my  desire,  and  an  injustice  to  him,  for  he  was  one  of 
the  best  of  his  tribe  ;  and  it  is  only  due  to  him  to  record, 
that  he  has  often  befriended  a  client  in  difficulties,  by 
discounting  his  bill  at  sixty  per  cent,  (on  good  security, 
of  course),  without  charging  his  customary  fee  of  six- 
and-eight-pence  for  attendance  in  the  transaction  ;  and 
so  for  the  present  I  leave  him. 

The  next  morning,  at  the  request  of  my  friend  the 
sheriff,  I  accompanied  him  to  the  place  of  execution.  I 
had  never  witnessed  this  painful  scene  before,  and  I 
made  a  vow  never  to  witness  it  again.  I  should  not  per- 
haps have  made  mention  of  the  circumstance  in  my 
journal,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  remarkable  coolness 
of  one  of  the  sufferers.  He  was  a  fine  man,  and  I  could 
not  help  thinking  it  was  a  pity  to  deprive  a  human 
being  of  life  for  such  an  offence  as  sheep-stealing ;  but 
the  practice  had  risen  to  such  a  mischievous  height  at 
that  time,  that  it  was  thought  imperatively  necessary  by 
the  Government  to  make  some  severe  examples. 


800  An  Execution. 

That  man's  death,  however,  haunted  me  for  months 
after.  I  was  standing  at  the  foot  of  the  ladder  up  which 
the  condemned  had  to  mount,  and  for  more  than  a  minute 
I  stood  side-by-side  of  this  man,  who  was  the  last  in  the 
lincj  and  who  had  to  wait  while  some  mistake  about  the 
ropes  on  the  platform  ^bove  was  remedied.  I  exchanged 
some  words  with  him,  which  very  much  prepossessed  me 
in  his  favour,  and  he  spoke  with  all  the  self-possession 
of  a  man  going  about  some  ordinary  business  instead  of 
to  be  hanged.  The  under-sheriff  had  to  draw  his  atten- 
tion to  the  matter  in  hand — for  the .  poor  fellow  was 
quietly  talking  with  me- — by  hailing  him  from  the  plat- 
form : —  *  - 

"JS^ow,  my  good  man,  we  are  waiting  for  you.'* 
.  "  I  beg  pardon,  sir,  I  was  only  talking  to  this  gentle- 
•  man;  I'll  be  up  in  a  moment!"  ' 

Lightly  stepping  up  the  ladder,  he^oilied  his  associates 
above,  and  presently'  after,  the  falling  of  the  platform 
.warned  us  that  all  was  over  !  I  went  back  to  my  inn, 
*ick  at'  heart,"  and  with  a  wretched  headache.  I  threw 
myself  on  the" sofa,  and  remained  there  the  greater  part 
of  {he  day.  The  next  moi-uing,  vexed  with  myself,  I 
did  not  know  why,  and  tired  with  the  sight  of  the  town, 
I  self  off  home,  without  waiting  for  the  trial  of  the  bush- 
rangers, as  there  was  evidence  enough  without  me,  and 
glad  to  get,  rid  of  the  buf^iness. 

I  had  some  money  mattcrs'to  arrange  with  a  settler  at 
New  Norfolk,  so  I  took  that  road,  intending  to  cut  across 
the  country  to  the  Clyde.  I  stopped  at  New  Norfolk 
that  night,  and  proceeded  on  my  journey  early  the  next 
morning.  There  was  nothing  to  prevent  my  reaching 
home  before  night,  though  the  country  was  hilly,  as  my 


Return  Home.  301 

horse  was  in  a  good  con  Jit  ion.  I  had  no  fear  of  bush- 
rangers or  natives,  for  all  the  bush-rangers  excepting  two 
had  been  taken;  and  of  natives  I  never  had  any  fear 
■when  armed  and  on  horseback. 

I  met  with  nothing  worth  noting  till  I  got  within 
about  eight  miles  from  home,  when  I  saw  a  lot  of  sheep 
with  my  brand  on  them,  which  I  knew  at  once  were  part 
of  uiy  home  flock  of  merinoes.  Impelled  by  that  sort 
of  acquired  instinct  which  prompts  a  settler,  I  think,  to 
go  after  his  lost  stock  wherever  he  comes  across  them, 
I  followed  the  sheep,  which  led  me  a  pretty  dance  over 
Iho  hills. 

There  were  not  above  twenty  of  them,  but  they  scudded 
away  like  deer;  for  lost  sheep  soon  become  wild  in  Van 
Piemen's  Land,  and  it  surprises  those  who  have  not  had 
experience  of  their  habits,  to  find  how  fast  and  how  long 
they  can  run ;  it  is  quite  a  chase.  Without  a  dog  and 
alone,  I  had  no  chance  with  them.  My  hunt  after  these 
sheep,  however,  had  drawn  me  near  one  of  the  steep 
hills  overlooking  the  Clyde;  and  as  my  horse  was  rather 
fagged  with  the  run  over  the  hilly  country  of  that  dis- 
trict, I  thought  I  would  give  him  a  little  rest  and  a 
drink ;  so,  dismounting,  I  led  him  by  a  circuitous  path 
down  to  the  water,  where  there  was  a  small  patch  of  rich 
grass,  and  tethered  him  there.  I  then  re-ascended  the 
hill  to  look  about  me,  for  it  seemed  to  me  that  I  had  follen 
on  a  little  nook  where  there  was  good  feed  for  five  or  sis 
hundred  sheep,  or  perhaps  more,  which  no  one  had  taken 
possession  of. 

I  was  scanning  the  place  with  a  wistful  eye,  and  had 
advanced  to  the  edge  of  a  precipice  overlooking  the  river, 
and  about  a  hundred  feet  above  it,  the  better  to  take  iu 


302       Meets  the  Gypsey  Leader. 

the  prospect,  when  I  observed  a  man  emerging  from  a 
thicket  of  bushes,  at  some  little  distance,  with  a  gun  in 
his  hand.  He  had  the  appearance  of  a  stock-keeper,  and 
not  thinking  of  bush-rangers  at  the  moment,  I  supposed 
him  to  be  some  one  who  had  been  beforehand  with  me  in 
bespeaking  a  good  run. 

I  felt  a  little  disappointed  at  the  sight,  for  I  had  al- 
ready in  my  mind  established  a  stock-hut  near  the  spot, 
and  was  calculating  how  many  sheep  it  would  feed,  while 
the  supposed  stock-keeper  continued  his  advance  towards 
mc.  My  fowling-piece  was  lying  on  the  grass,  as  I  had 
taken  it  off  to  ease  myself  while  I  was  taking  a  survey 
of  the  country ;  but  in  truth  I  was  not  thinking  of  the 
necessity  of  using  it,  being  near  the  Clyde,  and  having 
no  thought  of  the  bush-rangers. 

In  the  meantime,  the  man  approached  me  nearer  and 
nearer,  and  an  odd  manner  which  he  seemed  to  have  of 
holding  his  musket  excited  my  suspicions.  I  observed 
him  more  attentively,  and  to  my  exceeding  surprise,  and 
I  must  add,  consternation,  I  recognised  the  features  of 
the  Gypsey  leader  of  the  late  gang  of  bush-rangers.  I 
bad  only  time  to  snatch  my  fowling-piece  from  the  grass, 
when,  pointing  his  musket  at  me,  at  a  distance  of  about 
fifty  yards,  he  called  out  to  me  to  lay  down  my  arms ! 
My  gun  was  already  pointed  at  him,  and  my  only  notice 
of  his  command  was  to  cock  it,  and  place  my  finger  on 
the  trigger,  ready  to  fire. 


Cljn}itfr  €inrnti}-siitli. 

Awkward  predicament — The  Bush-ranger  declares  himself — Unex- 
pected appeal. 

"We  remained  in  this  position  for  nearly  a  minute,  till 
1  felt  my  arms  ache  with  holding  out  my  gun  in  the 
attitude  of  taking  aim ;  I  lowered  it,  with  the  muzzle, 
however,  still  pointed  at  the  bush-ranger,  and  with  my 
finger  on  the  trigger.  At  this  movement,  I  observed  he 
hesitated  a  little ;  and  then  lowered  his  gun  as  I  had 
done. 

I  was  at  a  loss  what  to  do  at  this  extraordinary  adven- 
ture. I  did  not  like  to  be  the  first  to  fire,  for  he  might 
have  companions  at  hand  ;  and  I  guessed  he  was  unwil- 
ling to  run  the  risk  of  firing  at  me,  for  if  he  missed  he 
would  be  at  my  mercy. 

As  I  anxiously  examined  my  antagonist,  it  seemed  to 
me  that  he  had  a  wearied  and  subdued  appearance.  So 
far  as  his  rough  garmen,ts  and  his  grisly  beard  went,  he 
looked  ferocious  enough ;  but  there  was  something  in  his 
eye  which  conveyed  to  me  the  feeling  that  he  had  no  mind 
to  make  a  fight  of  it,  if  he  could  avoid  it.  Impressed 
with  this  idea,  I  threw  my  gun  over  my  arm,  and  mo- 
tioned him  to  do  the  same. 

'  Who  are  you  ?"  said  I,  "  and  what  do  you  want?" 

'*  Who  are  you  ?" 

"One  who  does  not  wish  to  do  you  any  harm,  even 
if  you  are  what  I  suspect  you  to  be." 

(  303  ) 


304  Awkward  Predicament. 

"  And  what  do  you  suspect  me  to  be  ?" 

"You  look  as  if  you  had  taken  to  the  bush;  but  I 
don't  want  to  meddle  with  you,  if  you  don't  meddle  with 
me." 

At  these  words  he  advanced  towards  me — within  a 
dozen  yards  or  so. 

^I  see,"  he  said,  ''you  are  not  one  of  the  soldiers — I 
think  I  can  trust  you." 

"  Don't  come  any  nearer,"  said  I;  ''you  must  excuse 
me,  but  the  times  are  dangerous.  You  may  trust  me, 
but  you  can't  expect  me  to  trust  you." 

"  True,"  he  said. 

He  looked  round,  and  hesitated  for  a  few  moments, 
and  then  gazed  at  me  earnestly. 

''  You  are  one  of  the  old  settlers  ?" 

"I  am ;  and  my  farm  is  on  the  banks  of  this  river, 
about  a  dozen  miles  up.  3Iy  name  is  William  Thornley, 
and  now  you  know  all  about  me  that  is  necessary  for  you 
to  know.     Who  are  you  ?" 

I  knew  who  he  was  well  enough,  but  I  did  not  think 
it  prudent  to  let  him  know  that  I  recognised  himj  so  I 
let  things  take  their  course. 

''  Who  am  I !"  said  the  bush-ranger.  "  Ah  !  that  is 
not  easy  to  say.  But,  however,  I  will  show  you  that  I 
can  trust  you.  You  will  give  me  your  word  that  you 
will  take  no  advantage  of  me  ?    Not  that  I  fear  it '' 

"  Oh  !  I  will  give  you  my  word  not  to  attempt  any- 
thing against  you — but  what  is  your  object?  What  do 
you  want  with  me  ?'' 

He  made  no  reply,  but  laid  his  gun  gently  on  the  grass, 
and  then  passed  round  nic,  and  sat  down  at  a  few  yards' 
distance,  so  that  I  was  between  him  and  his  weapon. 

"  Well,  Mr.  Thornley,"  said  he,  "  will  that  do  ?    You 


The  Gypsey's  Appeal,  305 

see  I  am  now  unarmed.  I  don't  ask  you  to  do  the  ^me, 
because  I  cannot  expect  you  to  trust  to  mej  but  the 
truth  is,  I  want  to  have  a  little  talk  with  you.  I  have 
something  on  my  mind  which  weighs  heavy  on  me,  and 
whom  to  speak  to  I  do  not  know.  I  know  your  cha- 
racter, and  that  you  have  never  been  hard  on  your  go- 
vernment men,  as  some  are.  At  any  rate,  speak  to 
some  one  I  must.     Are  you  inclined  to  listen  to  me  ?" 

"  I  was  exceedingly  moved  at  this  unexpected  appeal 
to  me  at  such  a  time,  and  in  such  a  place.  There  was 
no  sound,  and  no  object  save  ourselves,  to  disturb  the 
vast  solitude  of  the  wilderness.  Below  us  flowed  the 
Clyde,  beneath  an  abrupt  precipice ;  around  were  undu- 
lating hills,  almost  bare  of  trees ;  in  the  distance  towered 
the  snowy  mountain  which  formed  the  boundary  to  the 
landscape.  I  looked  at  my  companion  doubtfully ;  for 
I  had  heard  so  many  stories  of  the  treachery  of  the 
bush-rangers,  that  I  feared  for  a  moment  that  this  act- 
ing might  only  be  a  trick  to  throw  me  off  my  guard. 
Besides,  this  was  the  very  man  whom  I  knew  to  have- 
been  at  the  head  of  the  party  of  bush-rangers  who  had 
been  captured  at  the  Great  Lake. 

He  observed  the  doubt  and  hesitation  which  were  ex- 
pressed in  my  looks,  and  pointed  to  his  gun,  which  was 
on  the  other  side  of  me. 

"What  more  can  I  do,"  said  he,  "to  convince  you 
that  I  meditate  neither  violence  nor  treachery  against 
you  ?  Indeed,  when  you  know  my  purpose,  you  will  see 
that  they  would  defeat  my  own  object." 

"  What  is  your  purpose,  then  ?     Tell  me  at  once — 
are  you  one  of  the  late  party  of  bush-rangers  who  have 
done  such  mischief  in  the  island  ?" 
20 


306  Requests  a  Favour. 

''  I  am  :  and  more  than  that,  I  am — or  rather  was — 
their  leader.  I  planned  the  escape  from  Macquarie  Har- 
bour ;  and  it  was  I  who  kept  them  together,  and  made 
them  understand  their  strength,  and  how  to  use  it.  But 
that's  nothing  now.  I  do  not  want  to  talk  to  you  about 
that.  But  I  tell  you  who  and  what  I  am,  that  you  may 
see  I  have  no  disguise  with  you ;  because  I  have  a  great 
favour — a  very  great  favour — to  ask  of  you;  and  if  I 
can  obtain  it  from  you  on  no  other  terms,  I  am  almost  in- 
clined to  say,  Take  me  to  Camp  as  your  prisoner,  and  let 

the  capture  of  the  Gypsey ah  !  I  see  you  know  that 

name,  and  the  terror  it  has  given,  and  still  gives,  to  the 
merciless  wretches  who  pursue  me — I  say,  let  the  cap- 
ture of  the  Gypsey,  and  his  death,  if  you  will — for  it 
must  come  to  that  at  last — be  the  price  of  the  favour 
that  I  have  to  beg  of  you." 

"  Speak  on,  my  man,"  I  said;  ''  you  bave  done  some 
ill  deeds,  but  this  is  not  the  time  to  taunt  you  with  them. 
What  do  you  want  of  me  ?  and  if  it  is  anything  that  an 
honest  man  can  do,  I  promise  you  beforehand  that  I  will 
doit."   • 

"  You  will ! but  you  do  not  know  it  yet.     Now 

listen  to  me." 


The  Bush-ranger's  Tale — His  Crimes  and  his  Sufferings — His  Es- 
cape from  Macquarie  Harbour. 

'•PerH/Njps  you  do  not  know  that  I  have  been  in  the 
colony  for  ton  years.  I  was  a  lifer.  It's  bad  that; 
better  hang  a  man  at  once  than  punish  him  for  life ; 
there  ought  to  be  a  prospect  of  an  end  to  suffering )  then 
the  man  can  look  forward  to  something;  he  would  have 
hope  left.  But  never  mind  that;  I  only  speak  of  it  be- 
cause I  believe  it  was  the  feeling  of  despair  that  first  led 
me  wrong,  and  drove  me  from  bad  to  worse.  Shortly 
after  my  landing,  I  was  assigned  to  a  very  good  master. 
There  were  not  many  settlers  then,  and  we  did  not  know 
so  much  of  the  country  as  we  do  now.  As  I  was 
handy  in  many  things,  and  able  to  earn  money,  I  soon 
got  my  liberty  on  the  old  condition;  that  is,  of  paying  so 
much  a  week  to  my  master.  That  trick  is  not  played 
now,  but  it  was  then,  and  by  some  of  the  big  ones  too. 
However,  all  I  eared  for  was  my  liberty,  and  I  was  glad 
enough  to  get  that  for  seven  shillings  a  week.  But  still 
I  was  a  government  prisoner,  and  that  galled  me,  for  I 
knew  I  was  liable  to  lose  my  license  at  the  caprice  of 
my  master,  and  to  be  called  into  government  employ. 
Besides,  I  got  acquainted  with  a  young  woman,  and  mar- 
ried her,  and  then  I  felt  the  bitterness  of  slavery  worse 
than  ever,  for  I  was  attached  to  her  sincerely,  and  I 

(307) 


308         The  Bush-ranger's  Tale. 

could  not  contemplate  the  cliance  of  parting  from  her 
without  pain.  So  about  three  years  after  I  had  been  in 
this  way,  I  made  an  attempt  to  escape  with  her  in  a  ves- 
sel that'was  sailing  for  England.  It  was  a  mad  scheme 
I  know,  but  what  will  not  a  man  risk  for  his  liberty  ?" 

"  What  led  you  to  think  of  going  back  to  England? 
What  were  you  sent  out  for  ?" 

*'  Why,  now,  sir,  if  I  tell  you,  you  will  not  believe  me, 
perhaps,  for  there  is  not  a  prisoner  that  is  asked  the 
question  who  will  not  say  that  he  was  innocent;  and 
indeed  I  don't  think  it  a  fair  question  to  ask  them,  for 
how  can  you  expect  a  man  to  condemn  himself?" 

*'  I  should  not  have  asked  you  if  you  had  not  begun 
to  tell  me  your  story;  but  if  you  don't  like  to  tell  me, 
say  nothing." 

"  I  have  no  reason  to  care  for  telling  the  truth.  I  was 
one  of  a  gang  of  poachers  in  Herefordshire,  and  on  a 
certain  night  we  were  surprised  by  the  keepers,  and  some- 
how, I  don't  know  how,  we  came  to  blows,  and  the  long 
and  the  short  of  it  is,  one  of  the  keepers  was  killed,  and 
there's  the  truth  of  it." 

''And  you  were  tried  for  the  murder?" 

"I  and  two  others  were;  and  one  was  hanged,  and  I 
and  my  mate  were  transported  for  life." 

"  Well,  the  less  that's  said  about  that  the  better;  now 
go  on  with  your  story,  but  let  me  know  what  it  is  you 
would  have  me  do  for  you." 

"I'll  come  to  that  presently ;  but  I  must  tell  you  some- 
thing about  my  story,  or  you  will  not  Understand  me.  I 
was  discovered  in  the  vessel,  concealed  among  the  casks, 
by  the  searching  party,  and  brought  on  shore  with  my 
wife,  and  you  know,  I  suppose,  that  the  punishment  is 


His  Attempted  Escape.  309 

death.  But  Colonel  Davey — he  was  governor  then — let 
me  oflf;  but  I  was  condemned  to  work  in  chains  in 
government  employ ;  this  was  a  horrid  life,  and  I  deter- 
mined not  to  stand  it.  There  were  one  or  two  others  in 
the  chain-gang  all  ready  for  a  start  into  the  bush,  if  they 
had  any  one  to  plan  for  them.  I  was  always  a  good  one 
at  head-work,  and  it  was  not  long  before  I  contrived  one 
night  to  get  rid  of  our  fetters.  There  were  three  others 
besides  myself.  We  got  on  the  top  of  the  wall  very 
cleverly,  and  first  one  dropped  down  (it  was  as  dark  as 
pitch,  and  we  could  not  see  what  became  of  him) ;  then 
another  dropped,  and  then  the  third.  Not  a  word  was 
spoken.  I  was  the  last,  and  glad  enough  was  I  when  I 
felt  myself  sliding  down  the  rope  outside  of  the  yard. 
But  I  had  to  grin  on  the  other  side  of  my  mouth  when  I 
came  to  the  bottom.  One  of  the  sneaks  whom  I  had 
trusted  had  betrayed  us,  and  I  found  myself  in  the  arms 
of  two  constables,  who  grasped  me  tightly.  I  gave  one 
of  them  a  sickener,  and  could  have  easily  managed  the 
other,  but  he  gave  the  alarm,  and  then  lots  of  others 
sprang  up,  and  lights  and  soldiers  appeared.  I  was 
overpowered  by  so  many.  They  bound  my  arms,  and 
then  I  was  tried  for  the  attempt  to  escape,  and  the  assault 
on  the  constable,  and  condemned  to  Macquarie  Harbour 
for  life." 

''  I  don't  want  to  stop  you  in  your  story,"  said  I,  "but 
what  has  all  this  to  do  with  the  service  that  you  want  of 
me  ?    The  sun  is  going  down  beliind  that  hill,  and " 

"Wait  a  bit — wait  a  bit — you  will  see.     I  have  not 
told  you  that  my  wife  brought  mo  a  child.     It  is  now  ' 
seven  years  old.     I  loved  that  child,  Mr.  Thornley,  more 
than  a  parent  usually  loves  its  child.     It  was  all  in  all 


310  Parental  Affection. 

to  me.  It  was  the  only  bright  thing  that  I  had  to  look 
upon.  When  I  was  sentenced  to  Macquarie  Harbour  for 
life,  it  would  have  been  a  mercy  to  put  me  to  death.  I 
should  have  put  myself  to  death  if  it  had  not  been  for 
the  thought  of  that  little  girl.  Well,  sir,  I  will  not  say 
more  about  that.  When  a  man  takes  to  the  bush,  and 
has  done  what  I  have  done,  he  is  thought  to  be  a  mon- 
ster without  feeling  or  affection.  But  people  don't  un- 
derstand us.  There  is  no  man,  sir,  depend  upon  it,  so 
bad  that  he  has  not  some  good  in  him ;  and  I  have  had 
some  experience,  for  I  have  seen  the  worst  of  us — the 
very  worst — in  the  most  miserable  of  all  conditions,  for 
that  Macquarie  Harbour  is  a  real  hell  upon  earth  ! 
There  is  no  time  to  tell  you  about  the  hardships  and  the 
miseries  which  the  prisoners  suffer  in  that  horrible  place 
— it  soon  kills  them.  But  my  greatest  misery  was  being 
deprived  of  my  little  girl — my  plaything — my  darling — 
my  life  !  I  had  not  been  at  Macquarie  Harbour  a  month 
before  news  came  that  my  wife  was  dead.  I'll  tell  you 
the  truth,  sir,  attached  to  her  as  I  was,  I  was  rather 
glad  than  sorry  for  it.  I  could  not  bear  the  thought  of 
her  falling  into  anybody  else's  hands,  and  as  our  separa- 
tion was  now  absolutely  and  hopelessly  forever — it  is  the 
truth — I  was  rather  glad  than  sorry  when  I  heard  of  her 
death.  But  my  poor  little  child  !  I  thought  of  her  night 
and  day,  wondering  and  tliinking  what  would  become  of 
her.  I  could  think  of  nothing  else ;  at  last  my  thoughts 
began  to  turn  to  the  pfbssibility  of  escaping  from  Mac- 
quarie Harbour,  desperate  as  the  attempt  appeared ;  for 
to  cross  the  bush  without  arms  and  without  provisions, 
exposed  to  the  attacks  of  the  natives,  seemed  all  but  an 
impossibility.     But  -almost  anything  may  be  done,  by 


Prisoners'  Plan.  311 

rosolution  and  paticneo,  and  watching  your  opportunity. 
I  have  learned  to  know  that  secret." 

I  now  became  interested  in  the  Gypscy's  story,  judg- 
ing that  some  useful  information  might  be  got  from  it, 
and  I  rather  eagerly  asked  him — "And  how  did  you 
escape  ?  how  did  you  do  it  ?" 

"  Ah  !  that 's  a  trick  worth  knowing  !  but  I  want  you 
to  befriend  me,  and  so  I'll  tell  you  all  about  it." 

"  How  many  were  there  who  escaped  with  you  ?" 

"  We  were  fourteen  in  all.  You  know,  perhaps,  that 
the  labour  at  Macquarie  Harbour  is  dreadfully  severe, 
and  the  privations  very  great ;  and  if  the  prisoners  were 
not  kept  down  by  a  most  vigilant  system  of  superinten- 
dence, there  would  be  mutinies  every  day.  ]5ut  each 
prisoner  is  .«o  watched  and  guarded,  that,  working  in 
chains,  which  are  constantly  examined,  escape  is  almost 
impossible;  and  even  if  escape  were  possible,  wander- 
ing in  the  bush  without  arms  or  provisions  is  hardly  less 
dreadful.  However,  we  did  not  think  so;  we  were  re- 
solved to  escape  at  all  risks,  and  take  our  chance  of  tlie 
re.st.  It  was  a  very  diflEicult  matter  to  communicate  to- 
gether, so  as  to  agree  on  the  plan  of  escape,  and  having 
been  deceived  once  before,  I  was  wary  of  trusting  my 
secret  intention  to  escape  to  any  suspicious  person. 
You  must  know  that  the  different  gangs  that  work  in 
chains  are  watched  by  overseers,  who  have  their  eyes 
constantly  on  them,  and  guarded  by  sentinels  with  loaded 
muskets.  It  must  happen,  however,  that  at  some  times 
particular  gangs  arc  set  to  work  at  a  little  distance  from 
the  rest,  on  the  outside  of  the  general  work.  It  was 
for  one  of  these  occasions  that  I  waited.  There  were 
fourteen  of  us  in  all,  and  we  went  on  working — cutting 


312         Successful  Manceuvre. 

down  timber  and  dragging  it  to  the  sawpits,  the  usual 
work  there — giving  no  cause  for  suspicion,  till  dusk, 
when  we  managed  so  that  we  proceeded  homeward  in  a 
straggling  line.  There  were  two  sentinels  on  the  line, 
whom  we  had  to  pass,  and  there  were  two  overseers  who 
followed  after  us.  At  a  given  signal  one  of  our  confe- 
derates rushed  on  the  sentinel  farthest  off,  while,  at  the 
same  time,  I  clasped  the  sentinel  near  me  round  the  waist 
and  arms.  This  prevented  them  from  firing  off  their 
muskets,  and  giving  the  alarm.  While  that  was  doing, 
another  party  of  us  gagged  and  bound  the  two  overseers. 
Thus  we  had  them  all  in  our  power,  and  it  was  but  the 
work  of  a  moment,  though  it  takes  longer  to  tell.  The 
muskets  were  wrenched  from  the  soldiers,  and  these,  with 
their  cartouch  boxes,  in  each  of  which  we  found  twenty 
rounds  of  ball-cartridge,  furnished  us  with  arms.  We 
bound  and  gagged  the  soldiers  as  we  had  done  the  over- 
seers, so  that  you  see  we  accomplished  our  purpose  with- 
out taking  life ;  not  that  we  should  have  hesitated  to 
sacrifice  them  all,  had  it  been  necessary,  but  it  was  not, 
and  it 's  always  bad  policy,  to  my  mind,  to  take  away  life 
uselessly;  it's  only  wantonness  and  cruelty  to  do  so,  and 
it  prejudices  a  man  on  his  trial.  The  next  thing  to  be 
done  was  to  get  rid  of  our  chains,  for  there  was  no  time 
to  be  lost,  as  we  knew  that  if  we  were  not  present  at 
muster,  the  ofiicer  would  send  to  look  after  us." 


Cjiaiitrr   (l:uiniti|-Eigljt|i. 

Passage  across  the  Country  of  the  escaped  Convicts — The  Bush- 
ranger's  confession — No  man  so  bad  but  there  is  some  good  in 
him — His  last  request — His  awful  death. 

"  We  scrambled  away  as  well  as  we  could,  till  we  got 
a  little  distance  off,  and  out  of  hearing,  and  then  we  set 
to  with  a  will,  and  rid  ourselves  of  our  fetters,  all  except 
three,  and  those  were  too  tightly  fitted  to  be  got  off  on  a 
sudden  without  better  tools.  We  got  the  three  chained 
men  along  with  us,  however,  as  well  as  we  could,  for  we 
would  not  leave  them ;  so  we  helped  them  on  by  turns, 
and  the  next  day,  when  we  were  more  easy,  we  contrived 
to  rid  them  of  their  encumbrances.  AVe  hastened  on  all 
night.  I  ought  to  tell  you  that  we  heard  the  bell  rung, 
and  the  alarm  given,  but  we  had  gained  an  hour  good, 
and  the  ungagging  of  the  sentinels  and  the  overseers, 
and  hearing  their  story,  took  up  some  time,  no  doubt. 
Besides,  it  is  not  easy  to  hit  on  a  track  in  the  dusk,  and 
as  there  were  fourteen  of  us,  armed  with  two  muskets, 
our  pursuers  would  not  proceed  so  briskly  as  they  other- 
wise might,  and  would  not  scatter  themselves  to  look 
after  us.  We  were  without  provisions,  but  we  did  not 
care  about  that,  and  not  being  used  to  long  walks,  we 
were  soon  knocked  up.  But  the  desire  of  liberty  kept 
us  up,  and  we  struck  right  across  the  country  in  as 
straight  a  line  as  we  could  guess.     The   second  day  we 

( S13 ) 


314    Passage  across  the  Country. 

were  all  very  sick  and  faint,  and  the  night  before  was 
cold,  and  we  were  cramped  and  unfit  to  travel.  The 
second  night  we  all  crept  into  a  cave,  which  was  sandy- 
inside,  where  we  lay  pretty  warm,  but  we  were  raven- 
ously hungry.  We  might  have  shot  more  than  one 
kangaroo  that  day,  but  it  was  agreed  that  we  should  not 
fire,  lest  the  report  of  our  gun  should  betray  our  resting- 
place  to  our  pursuers.  As  we  lay  huddled  together,  we 
heard  the  opossums  squealing  in  the  trees  about,  and 
two  of  us,  who  were  least  tired,  tried  to  get  some  of 
them.  When  we  climbed  up  the  trees,  they  sprang  away 
like  squirrels,  and  we  had  no  chance  with  them  that 
way;  besides,  it  was  dark,  and  we  could  distinguish 
them  only  faintly  and  obscurely.  We  did  contrive,  how- 
ever, to  kill  five  by  pelting  them  on  a  long  overhanging 
bough,  but  they  remained  suspended  by  their  tails,  and 
did  not  drop,  although  dead.  To  hungry  men  a  dead 
opossum  is  something,  so  one  of  us  contrived  to  climb  to 
them,  and  get  them  down  ;  and  then  we  lighted  a  fire 
in  the  cave,  quite  at  the  extremity  inside,  to  prevent  the 
flame  from  being  seen,  and  roasted  them  as  the  natives 
do.  They  were  horrid  rank  things  to  eat,  and  almost 
made  us  sick,  hungry  as  we  were ;  but  I  don't  think  a 
hair  of  them  was  left  among  us.  The  next  day  we  shot 
a  kangaroo,  but  we  feared  to  light  a  fire  because  of  the 
smoke,  so  we  eat  it  raw.  Well,  Mr.  Thornley,  I  will 
not  take  up  your  time  by  telling  you  every  little  thing 

we  did  in  the  bush.     We  came  at  last " 

"  Did  you  see  any  good  land  in  your  way  ?"  said  1. 
"  The  part  that  you  crossed  between  the  settlements 
and  Macquarie  Harbour  has  never  been  explored.  Any 
good  land  for  a  run  ?" 


Try    TO    LEAVE   THE    tOLONY.  815 

"  Not  much  ;  the  most  of  the  country  we  crossed  was 
scrub;  a  great  many  stony  hills.  "We  saw  very  few 
kangaroos,  and  few  signs  of  them.  It's  a  poor  country; 
but  here  and  there  was  a  nice  bit." 

"Plenty  of  water?" 

''  No  want  of  water;  but  it's  not  a  good  part  of  the 
country  for  a  run,  if  that's  what  you're  thinking  of. 
The  best  part  of  Van  Diemen's  Land  is  to  the  eastward ; 
all  the  western  part  of  the  island  is  far  inferior  to  the 
east.  I  could  tell  you  of  some  good  land  for  sheep  run 
near  the  eastern  coast. 

"Thank  you,"  said  I;  "but  are  you  not  wandering 
from  the  subject  a  little?" 

"  Oh  !  I  was  telling  you  that  we  first  struck  on  tho 
outskirts  of  New  Norfolk,  and  we  debated  what  we  should 
do.  Some  were  fur  attacking  the  settlement,  and  getting 
arms ;  but  I  persuaded  them  that  it  would  be  better  for 
us  to  endeavour  to  seize  some  small  vessel,  and  escape 
altogether  from  the  colony;  and  in  the  meantime  to 
keep  ourselves  close,  and  not  give  any  alarm.  My  com- 
panions agreed  to  this,  and  wc  struck  across  the  country 
to  Brighton  Plains,  and  so  to  Pitt  Water,  where  we  ex- 
pected to  find  some  large  boats,  or,  perhaps,  some  small 
vessel,  by  means  of  which  we  might  get  away." 

"  And  how  was  it  that  you  did  not  follow  that  plan  ?" 

"  We  did  follow  it ;  we  got  to  Pitt  Water,  and  lay 
snug  there  for  a  while ;  but  we  were  obliged  to  rob  a 
settler's  house  of  provisions  for  food,  and  that  first  gave 
the  alarm.  We  made  a  dash  at  a  boat,  but  it  was  too 
late;  precautions  had  been  taken,  and  the  soldiers  were 
out  after  us.  We  were  then  obliged  to  retreat  from  Pitt 
Water,  intending  to  get  into  the  neighbourhc'od  of  tho 


316  Gypsey's  Confession  Continued. 

lakes,  and  go  farther  westward,  if  necessary,  and  retreat 
to  the  coast,  where  we  judged  we  should  be  too  far  off 
to  be  molested." 

"  You  did  a  great  deal  of  mischief  at  Pitt  Water,  be- 
ftre  you  left  it,  if  all  the  stories  are  true  ?" 

"  We  did,  Mr.  Thornley,  I  own  it;  but  my  men  were 
determined  to  have  arms,  and  the  settlers  of  course  re- 
sisted, and  some  of  my  men  got  wounded,  and  that  made 
them  savage." 

"  And  afterwards  you  attacked  poor  Moss's  cottage  ?" 

"  My  men  had  been  told  that  he  had  a  large  sum  in 
dollars  at  his  hut ; — I  am  surprised  that  settlers  can  be 
so  foolish  as  to  take  valuables  into  the  bush — that  was 
all  they  wanted." 

"  But  why  did  you  take  poor  Moss  along  with  you  ?" 

"  I  was  obliged  to  do  it  to  save  his  life ;  some  of  my 
men  would  have  knocked  him  on  the  head  if  I  had  not 
prevented  them.  It's  true,  Mr.  Thornley,  it  is  indeed; 
I  sa-*ed  his  life." 

"  Well — that's  something  in  your  favour.  And  now 
as  the  sun  is  sinking  fast,  and  as  the  dusk  will  come  on 
us  presently,  tell  me  at  once  what  you  would  have  me 
do  for  you." 

"  Mr.  Thornley,"  said  the  bush-ranger, "  I  have  told  you 
of  my  little  girl.  I  have  seen  her  since  the  dispersion  of 
my  party  at  the  Great  Lake.  You  know  that  I  and 
another  escaped.  Since  then,  I  have  ventured,  in  disguise, 
into  Hobart  Town  itself,  and  have  there  seen  my  child. 
The  sight  of  her,  and  her  embraces,  have  produced  in  me 
a  strange  feeling.  I  would  willingly  sacrifice  my  life  to 
do  her  good;  and  I  cannot  conceal  from  myself  that  the 
chances  are  that  I  must  be  taken  at  last ;  and  that  if  I  do 


His   Last   Request.  317 

not  perish  miserably  iu  the  bush,  I  ahall  be  betrayed, 
and  shot,  or  hanged." 

"  And  what  can  I  do  to  prevent  it  ?" 

"  You  can  do  nothing  to  prevent  that  end,  for  I  know 
that  I  am  too  deep  in  for  it  to  be  pardoned ;  if  I  were  to 
give  myself  up,  the  government  would  be  obliged  to  hang 
me  for  example's  sake.  No,  no — I  know  my  own  condi- 
tion, and  I  foresee  my  own  fate.  It  is  not  of  myself  that 
I  am  thinking,  but  of  my  child.  Mr.  Thornley,  will  you 
do  this  for  me ;  will  you  do  an  act  of  kindness  and  charity 
to  a  wretched  man,  who  has  only  one  thing  to  care  for  in 
this  world  ?  I  know  it  is  much  to  ask,  and  that  I  ought 
not  to  be  disappointed  if  you  refuse  it.  Will  you  keep 
your  eye  on  my  poor  child,  and,  so  far  as  you  can,  protect 
it  ?  I  cannot  ask  you  to  provide  for  it ;  but  be  its  pro- 
tector, and  let  her  little  innocent  heart  know  that  there  is 
some  one  in  the  wide  world  to  whom  she  may  look  up  for 
advice — for  assistance,  perhaps,  in  diflSculty — at  all  events, 
for  kindness  and  sympathy.  That  is  my  request;  will 
you  have  so  much  compassion  on  the  poor,  blasted,  and 
hunted  bush-ranger  as  to  promise  to  do  for  me  this  act 
of  kindness  ?" 

I  gazed  with  astonishment,  and  I  must  add,  not  with- 
out visible  concern,  on  the  passionate  appeal  of  this  des- 
perate man  in  behalf  of  his  child.  I  saw  he  was  in 
earnest ;  there  is  no  mistaking  a  man  under  such  cir- 
cumstances. I  rapidly  contemplated  all  the  inconve- 
niences of  such  an  awkward  charge  as  a  hanged  bush- 
ranger's orphan.  As  these  thoughts  passed  through  my 
mind,  I  caught  the  eye  of  the  father;  there  was  an  ex- 
pression iu  it  of  such  utter  abandonment  of  everything 
but  the  fate  of  his  little  daughter,  which  seemed  to  de- 


318    A  Desperate  Struggle. 

pend  on  my  answer,  that  I  was  fairly  overcome,  and 
could  not  refuse  him.  "  I  will  look  after  her,"  I  said, 
''but  there  must  be  no  more  blood  on  your  hands  j  you 
must  promise  me  that.  She  shall  be  cared  for,  and  now 
that  I  have  said  it,  that's  enough.  I  never  break  my 
word." 

"  Enough  !"  said  he,  ''and  more  than  I  expected.  I 
thank  you  for  this,  Mr.  Thornley,  and  could  thank  you 
on  my  knees.  But  what  is  that?  Look  there,  a  man 
on  horseback — and  more  on  foot.  I  must  be  on  my 
guard." 

As  he  spoke,  the  horseman  galloped  swiftly  towards 
us.  The  men  on  foot  came  on  in  a  body,  and  I  per- 
ceived they  were  a  party  of  soldiers.  The  Gypsey  re- 
garded them  earnestly  for  a  moment,  and  then  ran  to 
his  gun,  but  in  his  eagerness,  he  tripped  and  fell.  The 
horseman,  who  was  one  of  the  constables  from  Hobart 
Town,  was  too  quick  for  him.  Before  he  could  recover 
himself  and  seize  his  gun,  the  horseman  was  upon  him. 

"Surrender,  you  desperate  villain,  or  I'll  blow  your 
brains  out." 

The  Gypsey  clutched  the  horse's  bridle,  which  reared 
and  plunged,  throwing  the  constable  from  his  seat.  He 
was  a  powerful  and  active  man,  and  catching  hold  of  the 
Gypsey  in  his  descent,  he  grappled  with  him,  and  tried 
to  pinion  his  arms.  He  failed  in  this,  and  a  fearful 
struggle  took  place  between  them. 

"Come  on,"  cried  the  constable  to  the  soldiers,  "let 
us  take  him  alive." 

The  soldiers  came  on  at  a  run.  In  the  meantime  the 
constable  had  got  the  Gypsey  down,  and  the  soldiers 
were  close  at  liand,  when  suddenly,  and  with  a  convul- 


An  Awful  Death.  319 

sive  effort,  the  Gypscy  got  Lis  arms  round  the  body  of 
his  captor,  and  with  desperate  efforts  rolled  himself 
round  and  round,  with  the  constable  interlaced  in  his 
arms,  to  the  edge  of  the  precipice. 

"  For  God's  sake,"  cried  the  constable,  with  a  shriek 
of  agony,  *'  help — help — we  shall  be  over !"  But  it 
was  too  late.  The  soldiers  were  in  the  act  of  grasping 
the  wretched  man's  clothes,  when  the  bush-ranger,  with 
a  last  convulsive  struggle,  whirled  the  body  of  his  anta- 
gonist over  the  dreadful  precipice,  himself  accompanying 
him  in  his  fall.  We  gazed  over  the  cds-o,  and  beheld 
the  bodies  of  the  two  clasped  fast  together,  turning  over 
and  over  in  the  air,  till  they  came  with  a  terrible  shock 
to  the  ground,  smashed  and  lifeless.  As  the  precipice 
overhung  the  river,  the  bodies  had  not  far  to  roll  before 
they  splashed  into  the  water,  and  we  saw  them  no  more. 


The  Corporal  is  pleased  to  make  some  remarks  on  the  recent  Tra- 
gedy— He  searches  the  pockets  of  the  deceased — His  discoveries 
— Thornley  proceeds  in  much  state  to  the  Magistrate's  house — 
He  is  restored  to  his  family — Mr.  Crab  indulges  in  some  peculiar 
observations  on  the  occasion — Ked  Ribands  produce  curious  emo- 
tions in  others  besides  mad  bulls. 

For  some  time  we  stood  gazing  down  the  precipice  in 
fearful  silence. 

"That  was  a  desperate  chap,  that  Gypsey  !"  said  the 
corporal,  who  in  right  of  his  dignity  thought  it  incum- 
bent upon  him  to  speak  first;  "who  would  have  guessed 
that  he  would  be  up  to  that  dodge  ?" 

"  It's  a  dodge  that  has  done  for  him  as  well  as  the 
constable,"  said  one  of  the  soldiers. 

"  It's  well  it's  no  worse,"  rejoined  the  corporal.  "  It 
might  have  been  one  of  us,  if  the  constable  had  not  been 
in  such  a  hurry  to  make  the  capture ;  and  you  see  what 
he  has  got  by  his  greediness.  However,  it's  only  a  con- 
stable, so  it's  no  great  matter.  But  pray,  mister,"  he 
continued,  turning  to  me,  "who  are  you?  You  were 
talking  to  the  Gypsey  when  we  first  saw  you,  and  you 
were  as  thick  as  two  thieves.  Steadman,  take  charge 
of  him.  We  must  take  you  to  camp  with  us,  sir;  our 
orders  are  to  secure  the  Gypsey  and  any  companions  that 
he  may  have  with  him." 
(320) 


T  HORN  LEY  IN   Trouble.  321 

''Here's  another  mess,"  thought  I, "and  I  ;>m  in 
another  pickle  with  the  soldiers ;  the  deuce  is  in  my  luck  I 
My  friends,"  said  I,  *'  I  fell  in  with  the  Gypsey  by 
accident.  You  see  there's  my  horse  grazing  in  the  hol- 
low below;  I  was  on  my  way  home  when  I  fell  in  with 
the  bush-ranger." 

"  That  may  be,  sir,  but  it  is  rather  suspicious;  and  I 
must  obey  orders.  Bowman,  go  and  fetch  up  the  gen- 
tleman's horse." 

''I  suppose  I  may  ride  him?" 

'  No  objection,  sir,  only  we  must  have  hold  of  the 
reins.  Beg  pardon,  sir,  you  know  we  must  do  our  duty 
and  obey  orders ;  very  sorry,  sir,  but  it's  always  the  cus- 
tom to  bind  people's  arms  a  little,  just  to  keep  them  from 
doing  mischief.  Excuse  me,  sir,  but  you  must  not  move 
away.     Steadman,  you  arc  loaded  ?" 

Steadman  gave  a  sign  of  assent. 

"  Very  pleasant,"  thought  I ;  "  however,  they  are  not 
so  bad  as  the  old  sergeant,  after  all." 

''You  will  have  no  objection  to  take  me  to  the  near- 
est magistrate?" 

"Where  is  that?" 

"  At  the  Clyde,  higher  up  about  eleven  or  twelve 
miles." 

"  We  are  going  that  way  to  report  ourselves  to  the 
sergeant's  party  there." 

"Then,"  said  I,  "  let  us  make  all  the  haste  we  can, 
for  it's  getting  late.  A  two  hours*  brisk  march  will  take 
us  there." 

"I  think,"  said  the  corporal,  "that  we  ought  to  be 
sure  that  the  Gypsey  really  is  dead,  as  well  as  the  con- 
stable." 
21 


322  Recovery  of  the  Dead  Bodies. 

"Dead  !"  said  Bowman,  "  he's  dead  enough  I'll  war- 
rant; why  the  falling  through  the  air  would  kill  a  man 
from  such  a  height,  without  the  crash  when  he  came  to 
the  bottom." 

''Ay,  ay/'  said  the  corporal;"  that's  all  very  well; 
but  one  never  knows  what  these  bush-rangers  are  up  to. 
My  orders  are  to  take  him,  and  we  are  to  follow  him 

wherever  he  goes,  although  I  must  say ,"  and  here  the 

corporal  looked  over  the  precipice  with  a  waggish  air 

*'  I  shouldn't  like  to  follow  him  down  this  height,  eh, 
Steadman?" 

"  That  would  be  going  beyond  our  orders,  as  the  major 
says;  but  if  we  are  to  look  for  the  bodies  we  had  bet- 
ter make  haste,  before  the  stream  carries  them  too  far 
down." 

We  descended  accordingly,  by  a  circuitous  path,  and 
found  that  the  ground  where  they  had  fallen  was  indented 
and  marked  with  blood.  Following  the  course  of  the 
stream,  we  presently  came  to  a  spot  where  some  dead 
timber  obstructed  the  current,  and  there  we  saw  the  two 
bodies,  separated  and  mangled,  and  quite  dead.  The 
soldiers  dragged  them  on  shore,  I  remaining  a  passive 
spectator  the  while,  and  from  the  appearance  of  their 
remains  there  could  be  no  doubt  that  the  life  of  both  was 
extinguished  at  the  same  moment  that  they  fell  to  the 
earth  from  that  fearful  height.  The  corporal,  with  much 
formality,  searched  the  pockets  of  the  dead  men,  and, 
•with  a  pencil,  noted  down  their  contents. 

''  Let's  take  the  constable  first,"  said  the  corporal. 
''What  have  we  got  here?  a  pair  of  handcufis;  ah! 
these  come  in  handy  ;  the  bush-ranger  won't  want  hand- 
cuffs any  more,  but  they'll  do  for  his  mate." 


An   Examination.  323 

''My  good  fellow,"  said  I,  "  surely  you  are  not  going 
to  put  those  handcuffs  on  me ;  I  have  told  you  who  I 
am,  and  you  will  soon  learn  the  truth  of  it." 

"It  maybe  all  very  right,  sir,  what  you  say;  but 
the  orders  are  to  secure  all  the  companions  of  the  bush- 
ranger, and  you  can't  deny  that  you  were  sitting  cheek 
by  jowl  with  him  when  we  spied  you  out.  But,  wait 
a  bit,  Steadman,  perhaps  the  gentleman  don't  like  to  put 
on  the  darbies  because  they  are  wet.  What  have  we 
got  next  ?  It's  all  smashed  ;  rum  !  it  smells  though ; 
it's  a  pity  now  that  the  constable  didn't  give  us  a  suck 
out  of  his  rum  flash  befbre  he  toddled  over.  I  can't  bear 
waste." 

"  Don't  you  remember  that  parson-chap  told  liim  at 
New  Norfolk  to  mix  water  with  his  rum?  He's  mixed 
it  now  with  a  vengeance,  eh  ?     Ha,  ha  !" 

"  Ha,  ha  !  that's  good.  What's  this  ?  a  pocket-book 
and  a  lot  of  papers,  but  they  are  all  wet." 

''Any  mopuses  ?" 

"  Not  a  rap  ! — yes,  there  is,  though — here's  one,  two, 
three,  nine  half-crown  notes.  Look  in  his  other  pockets, 
Steadman !" 

"Nothing  but  his  handkerchief." 

''  Well,  tie  up  all  these  things  in  the  handkerchief,  and 
we'll  take  'em  with  us." 

"  What  shall  we  do  with  his  clothes  ?  It's  not  a  bad 
suit,  only  it's  so  daubed  and  spoiled  from  the  smash 
he's  had ;  but  we'll  take  his  shoes.  And  now  for  the 
bush-ranger;  I  suppose  he's  no  great  shakes.  Clean  him 
out,  Steadman." 

"  My  eyes  !  here's  a  find  I  a  bundle  of  one-pound 
notes !" 


324         Valuable  Discoveries. 

"  One-pound  notes !  where  the  devil  did  he  prig  them 
from,  I  wonder  ?  whose  notes  are  they  ?  Kemp  and  Co. 
— as  good  as  dollars !  What  has  he  got  in  the  other 
pockets  ?" 

"  A  pair  of  small  pistols;  but  one's  broken,  from  the 
fall,  I  suppose ;  three  pieces  of  flint,  a  steel,  a  bit  of 
punk ; — capital  stuff  this  to  get  a  light ; — a  powder-horn 
squeezed  flat,  a  bag  of  balls,  a  capital  clasp-knife ;  by 
George  !  here's  a  tidy  tool  to  stick  into  a  man  !  Some- 
thing in  a  bag;  it's  tea!  We  shall  come  to  a  teapot 
next,  I  suppose.  Here's  a  jolly  lump  of  tobacco,  and  a 
prime  little  wooden  pipe  !  No  more  smoking  for  you, 
old  boy; — and  that's  all  I  can  find." 

"  Turn  him  over;  something  jingles,  I'm  sure.  Feel 
inside  there,"  said  the  corporal. 

"  He's  in  such  a  nasty  condition — all  smashed ;  stop, 
I'll  slush  him  a  bit  with  water.  There,  now  let's  see. 
By  George  !  here's  a  gold  watch,  and  chain  and  seals  ! 
And  look  here ;  sewed  up  in  the  breast  of  his  coat  there's 
something,  but  I'll  have  it  out.  Lend  me  his  knife,  and 
I'll  rip  it  up.  What's  this?  something  curious,  I  sup- 
pose, by  its  being  so  carefully  sewed  up.  There  are  pa- 
pers inside  by  the  feel." 

At  this  intimation  my  thoughts  recurred  to  the  bush- 
ranger's child,  and  I  judged  that  the  parcel,  which  was 
carefully  enclosed  in  canvass,  and  neatly  sewed  up,  might 
contain  something  to  throw  a  light  on  the  previous  life 
and  history  of  the  man,  for  I  knew  it  was  a  common 
practice  with  offenders  in  England  to  be  tried  in  feigned 
names,  to  avoid  being  traced  to  their  former  connections. 

"  I  should  recommend  you,"  said  I,  "  not  to  meddle 
with  that  parcel,  but  to  deliver  it  up  to  the  proper  au- 


An  Important  Package.        325 

thorities  unopened.  You  may  be  called  to  account,  per- 
haps, if  anything  should  be  lost  or  injured." 

The  corporal  surveyed  me  with  a  doubtful  air,  as  if  he 
half  suspected  that  I  had  some  object  in  keeping  secret 
the  contents  of  the  packet.  Fortunately,  this  made  him 
more  careful  in  preserving  it  intact,  in  order  that  its 
secrets  might  be  discovered  on  a  more  fitting  occasion. 

"Give  me  the  parcel,"  he  said  to  Steadman;  "  we'll 
look  at  it  another  time.  No  need  to  let  all  people  know 
what's  in  it,"  giving  a  look  at  me;  "and  now  what's  to 
be  done  with  the  bodies  ?  Our  order  is  to  bring  in  the 
body  of  the  bush-ranger,  dead  or  alive." 

"Had  you  not  better  consult  the  magistrate?"  said 
I ;  "  I  should  think,  as  the  body  is  sufficiently  verified, 
the  best  thing  to  do  is  to  bury  it  with  the  constable 
wh^re  they  lie." 

"  Oh  !  you  can  verify  the  body,  can  you?"  said  the 
corporal.  "Upon  my  word,  Mister  Gentleman  Bush- 
ranger, I  think  that  will  go  against  you  at  the  trial. 
However,  it's  not  far  to  the  magistrate's;  so  let  us  be 
moving,  and  get  there  with  our  prisoner  as  quick  as  we 
can ;  and  if  the  magistrate  thinks  it  right,  we  can  come 
back  again  for  the  body." 

We  set  out  accordingly,  I  sitting  on  horseback  in 
great  state,  with  my  arms  tied  behind  me,  and  the  horse 
led  by  the  bridle  by  a  soldier  on  each  side.  The  cor- 
poral followed  behind,  after  slowly  inserting,  rather 
ostentatiously  as  it  seemed  to  me,  a  ball  cartridge  into 
the  muzzle  of  his  firelock,  and  ramming  it  down  leisurely. 
The  click,  click  of  the  iron-rararod  on  the  ball,  I  took, 
as  it  was  intended,  as  a  quiet  hint  to  me  to  be  on  my 
good  behaviour. 


326  Thornley's  Release. 

In  a  little  more  than  a  couple  of  hours  we  reached  the 
house  of  the  magistrate,  to  whom  I  explained  my  ad- 
venture, and  on  his  assurance  the  corporal  released  me, 
or  rather  handed  me  over  to  the  custody  of  the  civil 
power.  All  the  papers  and  chattels  which  had  been 
found  on  the  person  of  the  deceased  were  placed  in  the 
safe-keeping  of  the  magistrate ;  and  I  took  care  to  point 
out  particularly  to  his  notice  the  curious  packet  dis- 
covered within  the  breast  of  the  bush-ranger's  coat.  I 
then  hastened  home,  but  the  news  had  already  preceded 
me,  that  I  was  taken  into  custody  by  a  party  of  soldiers 
for  joining  the  bush-rangers,  and  as  Crab  immediately 
surmised,  was  to  be  summarily  shot.  I  found  my  wife 
and  family  in  the  utmost  consternation,  but  I  soon  as- 
sured them  of  my  safety  and  good  condition,  by  de- 
manding instantly  a  supply  of  mutton-chops,  which  were 
speedily  served  up.  When  I  had  satisfied  my  first  hun- 
ger, I  related  my  adventure  with  the  Gypsey  bush- 
ranger. My  wife  'shook  her  head  when  I  came  to  the 
part  about  his  little  girl,  and  Crab,  who  was  sitting 
sulkily  in  the  corner,  and  had  been  out  of  humour,  as  I 
was  privately  informed,  ever  since  the  death  of  his  pet 
bull,  gave  a  horrible  grin  when  I  mentioned  my  promise. 

"  Upon  my  word,"  said  he,  ''  this  is  a  nice  country  to 
live  in,  isn't  it  ?  If  it  can  grow  nothing  else,  it  can 
grow  bush-rangers,  however,  and  now  honest  people  are 
engaged  to  look  after  the  breed.  It's  lijcky,  though, 
master,  that  your  friend,  the  Gypsey,  did  not  give  you 
a  hug  over  the  precipice.  Upon  my  life,  it's  droll — 
very  droll.  Here  are  you,  an  old  Surrey  farmer,  that 
one  would  think  would  have  gone  on  in  the  regular  jog- 
trot way  all  the  days  of  your  lifo,  like  other  quiet  folk, 


Crab's  Ill-humour.  327 

and  if  you  haven't  been  engaging  in  more  adventures 
than  ever  were  told  in  a  story-book  I  Dearee  me — 
dearce  nie — the  oklor  one  grows,  the  more  one  learn? 
If  anything  more  was  wanted  to  determine  me  to  leave 
this  wretched  country,  it's  this  last  affair.  And  then  to 
have  a  bush-ranger's  child  to  keep !  My  goodness  1 
What !  .  .  .  .  well,  never  mind — some  people  are !  never 
mind  what !  And  then  there's  nothing  to  be  done,  but 
another  fool  must  be  enticed  into  the  country  to  shoot 
ray  poor  bull — as  if  he  ever  did  anybody  any  barm  ! 
He  wasn't  a  bush-ranger,  I  suppose." 

"But  he  did  do  harm,  Mr.  Crab,"  said  Betsy,  with 
some  vivacity,  "  he  bruised  poor  Mr.  Beresford  dread- 
fully, and  he  would  have  tossed  me,  if  he  had  not  been 
shot  just  in  time;  and  as  it  was,  the  dust  from  his 
horns,  as  he  plunged  them  about  the  ground,  flew  into 
my  eyes." 

*'  Why  didn  't  you  run  away  then  ?  or  you  might  have 
slipped  aside,  and  caught  hold  of  him  by  his  tail,  and 
then  he  couldn  't  have  hurt  you ;  he  couldn  't  have  tossed 
you  with  his  tail,  surely !" 

"  Good  gracious,  Mr.  Crab,  do  you  suppose  that  I  can 
hold  bulls  by  their  tails  ?  A  pretty  sight,  indeed,  for 
your  ugly  bull  to  be  rampaging  about,  and  me  holding  on 
by  his  tail.     I  wonder  what  next !" 

''Bless  me!"  said  Crab,  "to  hear  how  some  people 
will  go  on  !  But  I  '11  go  to  bed.  The  quietest ! — the 
gentlest — and  the  sweetest-tempered  beast — when  he  was 
not  provoked  !  And  why,"  he  concluded,  frowning  at 
poor  Betsy,  and  resembling  in  his  ill-humour  the  angry 
animal  that  he  lamented, — "why,  in  the  name  of  all 
that's  reasonable,  could  the  girl  think  of  wearing  red 


328  Red  Ribands. 

ribands  in  her  bonnet  up  here  in  the  bush,  when  a  strip 
of  kangaroo-skin  or  bullock's-hide  would  have  served 
just  as  well  ?  And  there  's  that  young  rascal  that  shot 
the  bull ;  yes !  he  marches  about  with  the  red  ribands 
at  his  breast,  as  if  he  wanted  to  anger  all  the  cattle  in 
the  district." 

This  last  remark  on  the  part  of  my  old  friend — unin- 
tentioned  as  was  the  hit — made  Betsy  blush  in  a  manner 
that  I  thought  was  not  caused  by  Crab's  lamentation 
over  his  bull. 

"  Oh  !  oh  !"  thought  I,  "  the  young  fellow  has  been 
making  the  best  use  of  his  time  while  I  've  been  away. 
We  must  examine  into  this  matter  before  it  goes  too  far; 
young  ladies,  I  see,  are  precocious  in  Van  Diemen's 
Land.  I  shall  look  out  for  the  red  ribands  to-morrow." 
And  now  to  bed. 


Cljcjitrr  'd^jiirtiBtli. 

Surveying  a  grant  of  Land — Crab  becomes  a  Landed  Proprietor 
against  the  grain — The  Bush-ranger's  Daughter. 

We  were  roused  up  early  next  morning  by  a  party  of 
the  colonial  surveyor's  men,  who  came  to  measure  some 
land  in  our  district ;  and  we  were  exceedingly  surprised 
to  receive  a  letter  of  formidable  dimensions,  and  bearing 
a  prodigious  seal,  addressed  to  "  Mr.  Samuel  Crab,  River 
Clyde."  As  soon  as  that  worthy  individual  had  emerged 
from  his  dormitory,  I  placed  the  letter  in  his  hands,  and 
being  anxious  to  know  what  had  given  rise  to  a  corres- 
pondence between  him  and  the  Colonial  Government,  I 
urged  him  to  break  the  seal.  In  the  meantime  the  news 
of  the  arrival  of  this  unusual  missive  had  caused  all  the 
inmates  to  hasten  from  their  rooms,  and  presently  the 
whole  family  was  assembled  to  witness  the  ceremony  of 
opening  the  letter. 

I  have  often  regretted  there  was  no  artist  present  to 
take  a  sketch  of  the  party  assembled  on  this  interesting 
occasion.  It  was  still  early  morning  ;  the  shutters  had 
been  hastily  and  partially  thrown  open,  and  the  grey 
light  streaked  through  the  windows,  while  the  flames  of 
the  dry  wood,  which  burnt  and  crackled  on  the  capa- 
cious hearth,  diversified  the  lights  and  shadows  of  the 
rude  apartment.  The  women  suspended  their  usual 
avocations,  and  grouped  themselves  round  Crab  with 

(329) 


330  A  Mysterious  Letter. 

unrestrained  curiosity.  That  interesting  personage 
stood  in  the  midst ;  in  one  hand  he  held  a  colonial  hat, 
ingeniously  fabricated  from  the  skin  of  a  kangaroo,  with 
the  hairy  side  outwards ;  and  in  the  other  he  upheld  the 
mysterious  letter;  peering  into  it  with  curious  eye,  and 
with  an  odd  expression  of  countenance,  as  if  he  half 
doubted  and  half  mistrusted  the  contents  of  the  epistle. 

"  *  Mister  Samuel  Crab !'  that's  me,  sure  enough ; 
but  what  on  earth  the  Governor  can  have  to  say  to  me 
is  more  than  I  can  think.  '  Mister  Samuel  Crab  !'  It 
must  be  me ;  but  what  it  can  be  about  is  a  wonder, 
surely  \" 

"  Suppose  you  were  to  open  it,"  said  Betsy,  a  little 
pertly ;  ''perhaps  the  inside  would  tell  you." 

"  Open  it ! — well — do  you  open  it.  Miss,  as  you're  so 
curious ;  but  don't  break  the  seal — why,  there  must  be 
red-ochre  enough  in  that  seal  to  ruddle  a  sheep  !  Just 
tear  round  it  gently  ;  that's  the  way ;  well,  now,  what 
does  it  say  ?" 

"  Good  gracious  !  Mr.  Crab,  here's  an  order  for  a 
grant  of  land,  for  YOU  !" 

"A  grant  of  land  for  me!  the  thing's  impossible! 
What  do  I  want  with  land  when  I'm  a  going  to  leave 
the  colony,  maybe,  in  another  week,  only  what  to  do 
with  those  sheep  worries  me — there's  nothing  but  plagues 
in  this  country — it  can't  be  for  me ;  there's  some  mis- 
take !" 

•'•  No  mistake  at  all,"  said  I ;  "  here's  the  order  plain 
enough.  Four  hundred  acres  of  land !  "Well,  my 
friend,  you  have  got  your  wish  at  last,  and  now  you 
have  land  of  your  own.     What  will  you  do  with  it  ?" 

"  Land  of  my  own  ! — do  with  it  ? — why,  what  should 


Crab's  Good  Fortune.  331 

I  do  with  it  ?  What's  the  use  of  land  to  mc  wheu  I'm 
going  to  leave  the  colony  directly  ?  And  where  could  I 
find  four  hundred  acres  of  land  worth  looking  at? 
There's  scarcely  an  acre  of  good  land  in  the  colony : 
that's  a  fact — unless  it's  so  covered  with  trees  that  you 
can't   squeeze  your  way  through  'em." 

As  my  excellent  friend  thus  expressed  himself,  I 
fancied  I  observed  in  his  manner  a  confusion  and  embar- 
rassment, coupled  with*  a  secret  inclination  to  possess 
himself  of  the  land,  that  I  could  not  but  suspect  indi- 
cated some  fore-knowledge  of  this  grant,  which  he  was 
pleased  to  regard  as  totally  unsuspected. 

"You  were  down  in  Camp,"  said  I,  "about  two 
months  ago,  Crab,  were  you  not  ?" 

"  To  be  sure  I  was." 

''  And  did  you  not  see  somebody  in  particular  there  ?" 

"  I  saw  nobody  but  a  pack  of  knavish  store-keepers, 
who  would  cheat  a  man  of  the  eyes  out  of  his  head,  if 
he'd  let  'em.  I  was  talking  to  one  of  those  chaps  on 
the  jetty,  where  I  went  to  see  if  there  were  any  ships 
sailing  for  England — he's  one  that  I  deal  with  for  the 
slops  and  things  that  I  want  for  my  stock-keepers,  which 
he  cheats  me  in,  of  course — and  he  said  if  I  applied  to 
the  Governor,  he  had  no  doubt  that  I  might  get  a  small 
grant  of  land,  as  I  had  a  couple  of  thousand  sheep,  and 
the  Government,  he  said,  liked  to  encourage  industrious 
farming  men,  that  arc  really  farmers,  and  not  cockney 
creters  that  don't  know  at  which  end  of  a  sheep  to  begin 
a-shearing  at." 

"  And  so  you  asked  the  GoTcmor  ?" 

"  Not  I !  But  the  store-keeper  chap  wrote  a  letter  to 
the  Govemor,  asking  a  grant  of  land,  and  I  signed  it,  for 


332      His  Apparent  Unconcern. 

a  joke-like,  for  I  never  expected  anything  would  come 
of  it ;  and  a  pretty  passion  the  Governor  will  be  in,  I 
dare  say,  when  he  comes  to  know  that  I  asked  for  a 
grant  of  land,  and  all  the  while  was  a-looking  out  for  a 
ship  to  leave  the  colony  I" 

"  But  you  have  been  going  to  leave  the  colony  every 
day  for  the  last  seven  years,  and  you  have  not  gone  yet. 
Perhaps  you  may  stay  seven  years  more,  and  then  the 
land  will  be  of  use  to  you.    Besides,  at  your  years " 

"  At  my  years  !  Well,  to  be  sure  ! — and  what's  my 
years  ?  I'm  only  sixty-eight;  and  I  haven't  had  a  day's 
illness  once  the  whole  seven  years,  except  the  time  of  the 
christening  that  you  all  drunk  so  much  rum  punch,  when 
the  climate  had  such  an  effect  on  me,  and  gave  me  a 
dizziness  in  the  head — it's  so  changeable  !" 

"Exactly,"  said  I ;  "  the  changeableness  of  the  climate 
has  certainly  a  peculiar  effect  on  some  people,  and  on 
occasions  of  christening  it  is  apt  to  produce  dizziness  and 
other  disorders ;  but  that  has  nothing  to  do  about  your 
land.  I  know  of  a  prime  little  bit,  with  a  capital  run 
for  a  small  flock,  not  more  than  half  a  dozen  miles  from 
here." 

"  Ah  !  Cherry-Tree  Bottom.  That's  a  niceish  bit ; 
I  remember  the  letter  said  something  about  Cherry- 
Tree  Bottom ;  the  deuce  of  a  bit  of  a  cherry  will  you 
find  there  though ;  but  there's  no  water  carriage." 

"  Water-carriage  !  You  don't  want  water-carriage  for 
sheep ;  they  can  carry  themselves  with  their  tails  behind 
them,  can't  they  ?" 

"  Well — I  can't  say  but  that  lot  of  land  at  Cherry-Tree 
Bottom  is  a  fairish  piece  for  this  country.  But  it's  only 
wasting  it  to  give  it  to  me,  as  I  shan't  be  in  the  country 
long  enough  to  make  use  of  it." 


A  Friendly  Offer.  333 

"But  you  won't  do  any  harm  to  it,  I  suppose;  you 
can't  take  it  away  with  you  when  you  go." 

"No,  surely  not;  that's  very  true.  Well — it  is  a 
niecish  bit.  Do  you  know  I've  a  notion  you  might  grow 
hops  in  that  bottom.  I  put  the  spade  in  it  one  day,  and, 
my  eyes  I  if  it  isn't  all  loam  as  far  as  you  can  dig,  as 
black  as  your  hat,  for  I  don't  know  how  deep  !" 

*'  I  see,"  said  I,  "  that  you  have  an  inkling  for  it ;  so 
we  had  better  have  it  measured  at  once,  as  the  surveyors 
are  in  the  district." 

"Well,  well,  do  as  you  like.  Measure  away;  but  if 
you  think  I'd  stay  in  this  country  for  all  the  land 
that's  in  it,  you  are  much  mistaken ;  that's  all  I  can  say 
about  it." 

"  Why,  you  can  sell  it,  if  you  don't  like  it,"  said  I, 
"  and  I'll  buy  it  of  you." 

"  Will  you,  though  ?"  said  Crab.  "  Well,  that's  very 
friendly  of  you,  I  must  say ;  but  it's  worth  nothing." 

"It's  worth  a  dollar  an  acre,  at  any  rate;  but  what- 
ever it  may  be  worth,  I'll  engage  to  buy  it  of  you.  I 
think  it's  worth  two  hundred  pounds  down,  as  it  is." 

"  But  what's  the  use  of  that  ?  I  can't  sell  it  till  I've 
had  it  three  years,  and  used  it  as  a  farm.  I  declare," 
he  continued,  looking  through  the  window,  "  there's  that 
young  fellow  coming  that  killed  my  bull,  and  he  wants 
it,  I  know;  but  he  shan't  have  it,  I'll  be  hang'd  if  he 
shall.  I'm  first,  and  I've  the  first  right  to  it,  and  I'll 
have  it,  or  I'll  know  the  reason  why." 

And  so  it  was  settled;  the  pleasure  of  preventing 
young  Beresford  from  having  this  particular  bit  of  land 
having  more  weight  with  Crab  than  all  the  arguments 
wc  could  make  use  of;  so  strong  was  his  anger  against 


334  Survey  THE  Land. 

the  slayer  of  his  pet  bull.  I  shall  have  to  show,  how- 
ever, hereafter,  how  Crab  was  disappointed  in  his  vindic- 
tive determination. 

The  assistant-surveyor  was  polite,  and  his  men  were 
ready,  so  after  breakfast  we  set  off  to  Cherry-Tree  Bot- 
tom, taking  two  of  my  men  with  axes  to  mark  the  trees. 
*'Now,"  said  Crab,  when  we  arrived  at  the  spot,  'Til 
have  this  bit  just  here,  do  you  see;  beginning  at  this 
gum-tree,  and  going  over  the  point  of  that  little  rise  just 
across  the  rivulet  yonder." 

"I'll  soon  see,"  said  the  surveyor,  "how  the  lines 
run,  and  you  can  begin  where  you  like." 

"How  the  lines  run!"  said  Crab:  "what's  that  to 
me  ?  The  lines  may  run  which  way  they  like;  but  I 
want  this  bit  of  land,  and  this  is  the  bit  I'U  have 
measured." 

"Your  side-lines,"  replied  the  surveyor,  "must  be 
drawn  according  to  the  colonial  regulations,  parallel  with 
the  rest,  or  there  would  be  nothing  but  a  confusion  of 
blocks  and  angles.  Now  for  it ;  that  is  the  direction  of 
your  side-line;  where  shall  I  begin?" 

"  You  shall  never  begin  for  me,"  said  Crab,  very 
angrily,  "  if  I  can't  have  the  bottom.  It's  all  scrub, 
except  just  here." 

"  Let  us  see,"  said  I,  "  if  we  can't  manage  it.  Sup- 
pose you  begin  at  this  mimosa-tree  to  the  left ;  then  your 
base-line  would  extend  to  that  little  green  hill,  and  so 
you  would  take  in  all  the  best  part  of  the  rivulet,  and  the 
whole  of  the  bottom." 

"  Well,  measure  away,"  said  Crab;  "it  doesn't  mat- 
ter; I  shan't  be  here  long  to  be  worried  with  your  side- 
lines and  your  angles,  as  you  call  'em — though  there's 


Important  Information.         335 

not  much  angling  to  be  had  in  that  puddle,  I'm  think- 
ing— measure  away,  and  let's  have  done  with  it,  and  not; 
lose  such  a  day  as  this  for  ploughing." 

The  surveyor  adjusted  his  instrument  accordingly, 
and  his  two  men  going  before  with  their  chain,  we  fol- 
lowed after,  marking  the  trees  as  we  went  along,  by 
slicing  off  a  piece  of  the  bark,  front  and  back,  on  each 
side  of  the  trees  that  formed  the  boundary  line.  The 
survey  was  soon  concluded,  and  then  Mr.  Crab,  regard- 
ing his  landed  possessions  with  a  condescending  eye — 

"  I  say,  Mister,"  said  he  to  the  surveyor,  *'  don't  you 
tell  the  Governor  that  I'm  going  home  again,  by  the 
very  next  ship,  may-be;  let  that  come  of  itself;  no 
need  to  anger  people  before  the  time ;  and  governors,  of 
all  others,  don't  like  to  be  made  fools  of." 

"Never  fear,"  said  the  good-natured  surveyor;  "  I'll 
keep  your  secret,  you  may  depend.  I  dare  say  I  shall 
find  you  on  your  farm  seven  years  hence." 

"If  you  do,"  said  Crab,  "you  shall  eat  me." 

"  Eat  YOU  I"  said  the  surveyor,  making  an  impromptu 
survey  of  Crab's  extraordinary  person  and  habiliments ; 
"my  dear  sir,  make  yourself  perfectly  easy;  I  am  quite 
satisfied  with  the  survey  without  wishing  to  appro- 
priate you  in  so  exclusive  a  manner  to  myself;  and  now 
I  must  bid  you  good-day,  and  go  to  work  in  another 
direction." 

With  that  he  (juittcd  us,  and  we  returned  homewards, 
where  I  found  my  friend,  the  niagi.strate,  who  connnuni- 
cated  to  me  some  information  about  the  little  girl,  the 
child  of  the  bush-ranger,  whose  wretched  fate  I  have 
recorded,  which  determimd  me  to  lose  no  time  in  going 
to  llobart  Town  to  make  inquiries,  and  to  take  measures 


336  Timely   Interference. 

for  establishing,  beyond  the  possibility  of  future  ques- 
tion, the  identity  of  my  new  charge.  It  will  be  seen  that 
my  interference  was  just  in  time  to  save  her  from  a 
deeply-laid  plot  to  steal  her  away  from  the  island.  The 
curious  story  of  the  Gypsey's  daughter,  I  am  inclined 
to  think,  will  be  considered  not  one  of  the  least  interest- 
ing parts  of  the  memoirs  of  my  busy  life. 


C^ljajitfr   (Ejiirtij- first. 

Crab's  contradictions — French  Fashions  penetrate  into  the  Interior 
of  Van  Diomen's  Land — A  Parson  wanted — Smoking  a  Ship — A 
Plot  discovered — A  Disguise,  and  a  new  Adventure. 


It  was  on  a  fine  winter  morning,  in  the  montli  of 
July,  that  I  put  the  saddle  on  my  horse  for  a  ride  to 
Hobart  Town,  to  inquire  for  the  bush-ranger's  daughter. 
Some  snow  had  fallen  in  the  night,  and  it  lay  on  the 
ground  about  an  inch  thick,  presenting  an  appearance  of 
striking  contrast  with  the  evergreen  foliage  of  the  native 
trees  and  shrubs.  The  air  was  sharp,  but  bracing  and 
pleasant,  and  of  that  exhilarating  pureness  and  freshness 
which  I  have  sometimes  fancied  peculiar  to  this  island. 
Crab  stood  by  with  his  hand  on  the  holster :  he  was 
thoughtful  that  morning.  His  new  dignity  as  a  landed 
proprietor  sat  uneasily  upon  him,  and  it  was  plain  that 
an  inward  struggle  was  going  on  between  the  temptation 
to  make  use  of  his  land,  and  the  embarrassment  of  his 
habitual  vituperation  of  the  colony. 

<'I  suppose,"  said  he,  "I  must  build  some  sort  of  a 
hut  on  the  land,  to  show  that  it's  mine — not  that  it  mat- 
ters whether  it's  mine  or  anybody  else's  for  the  short  time 
that  I  shall  stay  here.  But  I  must  get  some  money  to 
pay  for  the  things,  if  there's  a  dollar  to  be  had  in  the 
colony,  which  I  don't  believe.  Do  you  carry  your  pis- 
tols loaded  ?''  lifting  up  the  cover  of  one  of  the  holsters, 
22  ( -■■•  ) 


338    .     Farming  Preparations. 

and  exposing  to  view  the  brass  butt-end  of  one  of  the 
large  horse-pistols  which  formed  my  usual  companions 
in  my  journeys  to  town. 

''Best  to  be  prepared,  Crab,"  said  I;  "I  carry  them 
for  use,  not  for  show;  and  what's  the  use  of  an  empty 
barrel  in  a  hurry  ?" 

"  Very  true.  It 's  dreadful  to  think  of  the  horrid  con- 
dition of  this  place,  where  a  man  can't  step  outside  his 
own  door  without  pistols  and  blunderbusses  !  But  I  must 
try  to  get  to  the  other  side  of  the  country,  and  sell  a 
matter  of  a  couple  o'  hundred  sheep  or  so,  that  I  may 
have  money  to  make  things  tidy  a  bit  at  the  bottom 
yonder.  It 's  too  late  to  put  in  any  cuttings,  but  I  think 
we  may  make  a  good  garden  there,  and  in  two  or  three 
years  I  may  gather  an  apple  from  my  own  tree,  on  my 
own  land — that  is,  some  body  else  may,  because,  of  course, 
I  shall  not  be  here  :  and  we  may  have  some  real  cherries, 
not  those  outlandish  things,  like  a  hawthorn  berry 
squashed,  with  the  stone  growing  outside  !  I  'm  deter- 
mined to  see  if  hops  won't  grow  there,  and  grow  they 
shall,  or  I'll  know  the  reason  why  !  And  only  to  think 
of  making  my  own  beer  with  hops  grown  on  my  own 
land.  It  would  be  a  charity  to  teach  the  folks  here  how 
to  do  it !" 

I  admired  the  contradictory  emotions  which  I  saw  per- 
plexed my  old  friend,  and  I  took  care  not  to  check  his 
aspirations  after  a  farm  of  his  own.  I  encouraged  him, 
therefore,  to  go  over  to  his  sheep-runs  and  dispose  of 
some  stock  to  meet  his  necessary  outlays.  I  shall  have 
to  describe  in  another  place  the  amusing  occurrences  of 
Crab's  journey  to  Launceston,  so  I  shall  say  no  more  of 
them  at  present. 


French   Fashions.  339 

I  was  gathering  up  the  reins  to  start,  M'hcn  I  was 
stopped  by  my  wife,  who  put  into  my  hands  a  list  of 
various  articles  wanted  by  the  family.  As  I  glanced  my 
eye  over  the  items,  I  read — "  bonnet  for  Betsy,"  ''  bonnet 
for  Mary,"  "bonnet  for  Lucy."  Three  bonnets  !  Stuff 
for  summer  dresses,  gloves,  kid  shoes.  ''  Why,  my 
dear,"  said  I,  ''we  shall  be  ruined  this  way;  why  can't 
the  girls  wear  kangaroo-skin  bonnets,  as  they  used  to  do 
when  we  first  came  here  ?  This  is  a  new  state  of  things 
entirely." 

"  To  be  sure  it  is,  my  dear.  AVben  we  first  came  here, 
there  was  nobody  in  the  wild  bush  but  ourselves,  but  now 
we  have  settlers  all  round  us,  and  I  don't  like  the  girls 
to  go  about  such  figures  I  Besides,  I  want  a  bonnet 
myself,  and  I  see  by  the  Hohart  Town  Gazette,  that  a 
consignment  has  come  from  Madame  Somebody,  at 
Paris ;  so  you  had  better  buy  all  we  want  while  you  are 
in  town^" 

''  The  deuce  take  the  newspapers,"  said  I,  "  for  putting 
things  into  people's  heads  that  otherwise  they  wouldn't 
think  about.  The  idea  of  French  fashions  up  the  coun- 
try in  Van  Diemen's  Land  !  I  suppose  the  girls  will  be 
wanting  parasols  nest,  to  preserve  their  complexions." 

"  I  am  glad  you  have  mentioned  it,  my  dear;  I  knew 
there  was  something  that  I  had  forgotten,  and  it's  the 
parasols.  You  can  get  four,  and  then  we  shall  have  one 
apiece." 

"  Upon  my  word,"  said  I,  " I  can't  stand  this.  Pa- 
rasols in  the  bush !  Why,  the  kangaroos  would  laugh 
at  us !" 

'■'■  The  kangaroos  may  laugh  as  much  as  they  please, 
my  dear,  but  I  don't  like  to  see  the  girls  get  so  freckled. 


340  Delicate   Commission, 

You  forget  that  Betsy  is  a  young  woman  now,  and  it  'a 
right  that  she  should  take  a  proper  pride  in  herself." 

"  I  see,"  said  I,  "  how  it  is.  That  aifair  of  the  bull 
is  at  the  bottom  of  all  the  mischief.  Well — time  moves 
on.     Nothing  else  wanted,  I  hope?" 

"  We  want  another  chest  of  tea ;  the  last  one  is 
nearly  out;  but  this  time  I  wish  you  would  buy  a  little 
green  to  mis  with  the  black ;  and  you  see  I  have  put 
down  a  couple  of  bags  of  sug-ar,  and  a  bag  of  rice." 

"  I  see,"  said  I,  "and  now  I'm  off,  or  I  shall  be  late 
in  town." 

"  Wait  a  moment,"  cried  young  Beresford,  out  of 
breath ;  "  I  have  a  little  commission  for  you.  I  wish 
you  would  do  me  a  favour." 

"With  pleasure,"  said  I,  "what  is  it?" 

"  I  don't  suppose  it  would  give  you  much  trouble,  or 
I  would  not  ask  you." 

''  Never  mind  the  trouble.  ^Vhat  is  it?  I'll  do  it  if 
I  can." 

"Why — you  see,  I  can't  go  to  town  myself  just  at 
this  moment,  and  writing  will  not  do -" 

"But  what  is  it  that  writing  will  not  do  ?" 

"I  don't  want  you  to  do  anything — exactly,  but  it's 
just  to  make  some  inquiries." 

"Inquiries  about  what?" 

"Oh,  it's  not  about  anybody;  but  you  see don't 

you  think,  Mr.  Tlinmh'y,  it's  a  great  inconvenience  not 
to  have  a  resident  clergyman  at  the  Clyde  ?" 

"What !  are  you  going  to  turn  parson?" 

"Me!  nonsense!  that's  not  it;  you  don't  understand 
what  I  mean." 

"  How  can  I,  if  you  don't  tell  me  ?  what  is  it  that  has 
kindled  this  sudden  religious  zeal  in  3-ou,  pray  ?" 


> 


A  Parson  Wanted.  341 

"  It's  not  religious  zeal,  as  you  call  it.  Upon  my 
word,  it's  very  provoking  that  you  can't  understand  me. 
You  remember  when  poor  Moss  was  carried  off  by  the 
bush-rangers !     In  short.  Miss  Moss  .  .  , ." 

"  Oh !"  said  I. 

"  Well,  now  you  understand  my  meaning  perfectly." 

"But  you  have  not  told  it." 

"  Haven't  I  ?  why  I  have  been  telling  you  all  the  time. 
But  we  can't  be  married  without  the  parson ;  we  can 
manage  all  the  rest  ourselves.  Now,  just  do  me  the 
favour  to  find  out  what  we  must  do.  We  must  go  to 
town,  I  suppose,  because  Miss  Moss  wishes  to  be  mar- 
ried in  the  church.  So  if  you  can  contrive  to  see  the 
Reverend,  I  want  you  to  say  that  we  propose  being  in 
town  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  this  month — the  twenty- 
fourth,  mind — don't  forget  the  day — and  that's  all." 

"And  enough  too,"  said  I.  "Are  you  aware,  un- 
happy man  (I  had  just  looked  round  and  saw  that  my 
wife  was  out  of  hearing),  of  the  rash  step  you  are  about 
to  take  ?  It's  only  the  other  day  that  the  parson  had  to 
attend  a  very  respectable  gentleman  on  his  last^  appear- 
ance for  killing  one  of  his  wives — although  he  had  tried 
three  before;  you  see  how  difficult  it  is  to  find  one  to 
suit ! — and  now  it  seems  it  is  your  turn  to  require  his 
professional  assistance,  though  not  precisely  in  the  same 
way.  Well,  if  it  must  be  so,  I  suppose  I  must  consent 
to  be  an  accessory  before  the  fict,  although  why  I  should 
help  you  to  marry  I'm  sure  I  don't  know,  for  you  never 
did  me  any  harm.     And  now  I'm  off." 

I  rode  leisurely  on  to  town,  stopping  for  about  two 
hours  at  the  Green  Ponds.  As  soon  as  I  had  seen  my 
horse  properly  taken  care  of,  I  set  about  the  principal 


342  Mysterious   House. 

object  of  my  journey,  and  walked  to  the  part  of  the  town 
where  the  person  who  had  charge  of  the  bush-ranger's 
orphan  resided.  I  tapped  at  the  d<ior,  and  was  surprised 
not  to  receive  any  answer.  I  tried  the  latch,  and  found 
that  the  door  opened  easily;  there  was  no  particular  ap- 
pearance about  the  house,  so  far  as  I  could  observe,  but 
it  was  empty ;  and  I  thought  it  odd  that  it  should  be  left 
unsecured. 

As  I  stood  before  the  door  musing  on  what  I  should 
do,  and  expecting  every  moment  that  some  one  would 
appear  to  give  me  information  of  the  inmates,  I  cast  my 
eyes  towards  the  Dcrwent — for  as  the  house  before 
which  I  was  standing  was  at  the  upper  part  of  the  town 
on  the  eminence  to  the  north,  I  had  a  fine  view  of  the 
river  and  the  harbour.  I  thought  I  observed  an  unusual  • 
bustle  on  the  jetty,  and  I  descried  a  corporal's  party 
of  soldiers  stepping  into  a  boat,  whose  destination  seemed 
to  be  a  vessel  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  end 
of  the  jetty,  with  her  sails  unfurled  ready  to  start  ou1> 
ward  bound. 

As  no  one  came,  I  conjectured  that  the  occupants  of 
the  house,  which  stood  at  some  little  distance  apart  from 
any  other  dwelling,  had  gone  out  for  some  purpose,  so  I 
closed  the  door,  and  prompted  by  that  curiosity  which 
is  apt  to  seize  on  us  when  we  have  nothing  particular  to 
do,  I  walked  down  to  the  jetty,  where  I  observed  a  num- 
ber of  persons  congregated,  and  apparently  excited  by 
some  object  of  interest.  The  boat  with  the  soldiers  had 
already  pushed  away  from  the  shore,  and  was  on  its  way 
to  the  ship. 

I  quickly  reached  the  spot,  and  found  myself  in  the 
midst  of  a  crowd  of  the  miscellaneous  character  usual 


A  Runaway.  343 

on  such  occasions  in  Van  Dicmen's  Land.  The  princi- 
pal part  was  composed  of  prisoners,  those  in  government 
employ  being  distinguished  by  their  yellow  jackets,  and 
the  others  bearing  that  peculiar  physiognomy  which 
characterises  those  in  the  bondage  of  punishment — a 
sort  of  cast-down  expression  of  countenances,  averting 
themselves  shrinkingly  from  the  eye  of  any  observer  that 
is  cast  inquiringly  upon  them.  The  remarks  which  I 
heard  around  me  soon  made  me  accjuainted  with  what 
was  going  on. 

"  Have  they  found  him?"  said  one. 

"  No :  found  him  I  don't  you  see  the  soldiers  are  going 
after  him  now  ?" 

"  They'll  never  find  him,"  said  another. 

The  constables  rummaged  every  hole  in  the  ship  that 
a  rat  could  get  into,  and  they  could  find  nothing. 

"  They  say  they're  going  to  smoke  the  ship." 

"  That  will  puzzle  him  ;  there's  nothing  like  smoking 
a  ship  to  unkennel  a  runaway." 

"Who  has  run  away?"  inquired  another.  "Some 
chap  tired  of  his  lag  ?" 

"It's  Black  Jack,"  said  a  roguish-looking  fellow  in  a 
yellow  jacket;  "  they  say  he's  got  stowed  away  in  a 
cask,  and  that  some  of  the  crew  have  helped  him." 

"Jack  had  plenty  of  money,"  said  the  fhst  speaker; 
"  but  where  he  got  it  from  always  puzzled  me." 

"It  puzzled  more  than  you,"  said  the  yellow  jacket; 
''  Jack  seemed  to  be  always  a  scheming  after  something, 
but  we  never  could  make  out  what." 

"  Was  he  a  government  man  ?"  inquired  a  farming- 
looking  person  in  a  velveteen  coat,  and  a  straw  in  his 
mouth. 


344  Smoking  the  Ship. 

^'Yes,  a  lifer;  but  he  got  a  ticket  of  leave  nobody 
knows  how;  it  wasn't  for  his  beauty,  at  any  rate.  But 
money  can  do  anything.  They  say  he  was  an  attorney's 
clerk  before  he  came  here — the  one  that  did  the  swearing 
part  of  the  ofl&ce  business,  serving  the  notices  and  mak- 
ing any  davys  that  were  wanted — I  do  believe  that  fel- 
low could  swear  through  a  two-inch  board.  But  it's  all 
up  with  him  now  if  they  find  him." 

"  What  will  they  do  with  him,  if  they  catch  him  ?" 
asked  the  farmer. 

''  Scrag  him,"  replied  the  yellow  jacket ;  "  don't  you 
know  it's  a  job  for  the  sheriiF  if  a  prisoner  tries  to 
escape  ?" 

''They  wouldn't  hang  him,"  observed  a  decent-look- 
ing man  who  had  listened  to  this  colloquy;  ''they  would 
only  send  him  to  Macquarie  Harbour." 

"  Only  !"  exclaimed  the  yellow  jacket.  "  Do  you  call 
Macquarie  Harbour  nothing  ?  I'd  rather  give  a  jump 
and  a  kick  from  the  parson's  hustings  any  day,  than  go 
to  that  cursed  place;  they  kill  'em  there  by  inches. 
There  go  up  the  soldiers ;  see  they  are  ranging  them- 
selves in  line  across  the  deck ;  we  shall  have  some  fun, 
I  suppose,  presently." 

I  got  interested  about  this  attempted  escape,  though  I 
knew  nothing  about  the  man  whom  I  had  heard  called 
"  Black  Jack,"  and  I  made  my  way  through  the  crowd 
to  the  edge  of  the  jetty,  where  I  saw  one  or  two  persons 
with  whom  I  was  acquainted.  Wc  watched  the  vessel 
for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  when  we  observed  some 
smoke  to  issue  from  the  fore  part  of  her,  and  presently 
afterwards  a  signal  was  hoisted  on  board,  which  was  an- 
swered from  the  bhorc.     Some  little  bustle  now  took 


T  HE   Capture.  345 

place  on  dcek,  and  a  small  party  of  soldiers  wli'ich  had 
been  marched  down  to  the  jetty,  advanced  to  the  edge  of 
the  water,  to  keep  clear  a  space  for  the  expected  landing. 
In  a  minute  or  two  some  person  huddled  up  was  lowered 
into  a  boat  alongside,  which  was  rapidly  rowed  towards 
the  shore. 

"  There  's  Black  Jack  !"  exclaimed  a  voice,  which  I 
immediately  recognised  as  that  of  the  yellow  jacket ; 
*'  they  've  smoked  him  out  of  his  hole,  and  now  they've 
got  him,  and  he's  booked,  and  no  mistake  !" 

With  that  he  edged  himself  closer  to  the  spot  to  which 
the  boat  was  approaching,  as  if  impelled  by  a  sort  of 
restless  curiosity. 

"  Keep  back  !"  said  the  sergeant  who  commanded  the 
part}'  of  soldiers  at  the  landing;  "  what  are  you  pushing 
in  here  for  ?  there 's  plenty  of  room  on  the  jetty  without 
crowding  on  us." 

"  I  ain  't  a-crowding,"  said  the  yellow  jacket;  /'  only 
I  want  to  see  how  a  fellow  looks  after  he's  been  smoked. 
He  looks  preciously  down  in  the  mouth ;  he 's  Black 
Jack  now,  if  he  never  was  before." 

Two  constables  now  took  charge  of  the  poor  wretch, 
holding  him  up  by  his  arms ;  he  seemed  to  be  in  the 
last  stage  of  exhaustion,  and  so  helpless  was  his  ap- 
pearance that  they  forcbore  to  handcuff  him.  As  he 
tottered  on  he  passed  the  spot  where  the  man  in  the 
yellow  jacket  was  standing ;  I  fancied  he  gave  him  a 
look,  and  immediately  afterwards  he  staggered  and  fell 
from  the  arms  of  the  constables.  The  yellow  jacket 
officiously  stepped  forward,  and  caught  hold  of  his  hand 
to  assist  him  in  rising,  and  I  again  observed  Black  Jack 
give  to  this  man  a  peculiar  look.     I  was  struck  with  this 


3i6       A  Suspicious  Personage. 

circumstance,  and  it  immediately  occurred  to  me  that  the 
captured  man  was  acting  a  part,  and  that  the  other  was 
a  confederate  in  some  plot  understood  between  them. 

My  curiosity  was  roused,  and  I  kept  my  eyes  on  the 
yellow  jacket,  who  I  observed  took  no  further  notice  of 
the  prisoner,  but  seemed  solicitous  to  make  his  way  out 
'Of  the  throng  as  quickly  as  possible.  I  don 't  know  what 
feeling  prompted  me,  other  than  a  vague  idea,  that  there 
was  some  confederacy  between  them — and  anything  like 
a  plot  among  the  convicts  was  sufficient  to  excite  sus- 
picion— but  I  felt  a  strange  inclination  to  watch  the  man. 
He  contrived  to  make  his  way  quietly  and  rapidly 
through  the  crowd,  but  I  followed  him  closely.  With- 
out turning  his  head,  and  affecting  a  careless  manner, 
be  hastened  towards  the  upper  part  of  the  town.  He 
stopped  when  he  had  turned  the  corner  of  the  sti'eet,  and 
looked  at  something  in  his  hand,  which  he  read  atten- 
tively.. He  was  about  to  move  forward  again  hastily, 
when  he  caught  sight  of  me,  and  seemed  surprised  and 
confused  to  see  me  near  him.  He  hesitated  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  then,  as  if  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  aban- 
don his  present  intention,  he  retraced  his  steps,  and 
taking  oif  his  hat  as  he  passed  me,  he  went  away  in 
another  direction. 

I  mused  for  a  minute  or  two  on  this  occurrence,  and 
regretted  that  I  had  not  questioned  the  man.  I  looked 
after  him,  but  he  was  out  of  sight. 

The  afternoon  was  now  drawing  to  a  close,  and  I 
thought  that  before  I  went  to  my  inn,  I  would  make 
another  visit  to  the  house  in  which  I  was  led  to  believe 
the  bush-ranger's  little  girl  resided.  I  walked  up  the 
hill  accordingly,  and  knocked  at  the  door  of  the  house 


He   is  Watched.  347 

•with  my  stick  :  there  was  no  answer.  I  opened  the  door 
and  found  the  house  still  untenanted,  and  apparently  no 
one  had  visited  it  since  I  was  there  before.  I  thought 
this  odd ;  and  being  tirod  with  my  ride  to  town  and 
walking  about,  I  sat  down  by  the  window. 

As  I  looked  down  the  road  in  the  opposite  direction  to 
that  from  which  I  had  reached  the  house,  I  saw  at  a 
little  distance  the  man  in  the  yellow  jacket,  who  seemed 
to  be  making  his  way  to  the  same  spot.  This  unex- 
pected re-appearance  of  the  man  roused  me,  and  vague 
surmises  crossed  my  mind,  that  he  was  in  some  way  con- 
nected with  the  persons  whom  I  had  come  to  seek. 
^There  was  no  one  in  the  street  but  himself,  and  I  ob- 
served that,  after  giving  a  careless  look  around  him  as 
if  to  be  sure  that  he  was  not  watched,  he  came  straight 
to  the  house.  He  laid  his  hand  on  the  latch,  but  checked 
himself;  and  I  heard  him  slowly  walking  round  the 
building. 

It  instantly  struck  me  that  his  object  was  to  ascertain 
whether  there  was  any  one  behind  it  or  near  it,  and  I 
determined  to  counteract  his  project. 

There  was  a  window  at  the  back  with  the  shutter 
closed,  the  house  consisting  only  of  one  room  and  a 
kitchen  at  the  side.  It  was  getting  dusk,  and  I  thought 
that  if  I  could  open  the  door  so  as  not  to  be  heard,  I 
could  go  round  one  side  of  the  house  while  he  was  going 
round  the  other,  and  so  avoid  being  seen  by  him.  I 
opened  the  door  cautiously;  it  made  no  noi.^e,  and  I 
moved  silently  to  the  left,  and  looked  round  the  corner. 
There  was  no  one  to  be  seen,  and  I  immediately  stopped 
to  the  left  side  of  the  house ;  in  a  few  seconds  I  heard 
the  man  lift  up  tlic  latch,  and  enter  the  house. 


348  An  Accomplice. 

Without  losing  a  moment,  I  stationed  myself  at  the 
back  of  the  house  by  the  window,  and  waited  for  what 
might  happen.  I  remained  in  this  position  for  nearly 
half  an  hour,  and  was  getting  tired  of  waiting,  being  at 
a  loss  what  to  do  next,  when  I  heard  in  the  direction  of 
the  bush — for  this  house  was  the  last  one  on  the  outside 
of  the  town — the  pleasing  note  of  the  native  magpie, 
which  seemed  to  me,  however,  to  be  an  imitation,  though 
a  very  good  one.  I  guessed  that  it  was  some  signal. 
As  I  was  between  the  house  and  the  bush,  I  moved 
away  to  the  side,  and  it  was  just  in  time,  perhaps, 
to  avoid  being  discovered,  for  I  had  scarcely  done  so, 
when  a  light  was  shown  at  the  window  at  the  back  of 
the  house,  upon  which  the  signal  was  immediately  re- 
peated. 

It  was  now  nearly  dark,  and  I  remained  stuck  up 
against  the  wall,  my  curiosity  being  now  excited  more 
than  ever,  for  I  felt  convinced  that  the  present  proceed- 
ings had  some  reference  to  the  absence  of  the  child  whom 
I  had  come  to  town  to  see.  In  a  minute  or  two  I  heard 
the  footsteps  of  some  one  cautiously  approaching,  and  I 
was  terribly  frightened  lest  I  should  be  discovered  in  my 
hiding  place. 

Luckily  for  my  projiU't,  the  party  who  approached, 
from  an  excess  of  precaution,  crept  in  by  the  back  win- 
dow or  opening,  for  there  was  no  glass  to  it,  only  a  shut- 
ter. Anxious  to  catch  the  conversation  of  these  worthies, 
I  crept  on  my  hands  and  knees  round  the  corner  as  softly 
as  I  could,  and  ensconced  myself  under  the  window 
through  which  the  man  iiad  crept.  I  could  see  no  light, 
so  I  supposed  the  candh^  had  been  put  out.  The  first 
words  that  I  caught  were  these : — 


Conversation   Overheard.       349 

''So  Black  Jack  is  caught  j  it  was  a  clever  trick  though, 
to  get  hooped  up  in  a  cask  with  two  false  heads,  and  with 
water  top  and  bottom." 

"Yes,"  said  yellow  jacket;  ''but  the  smoke  found 
him  out;  he  lost  his  senses  in  the  dark,  and  began  to 
kick  before  his  time,  and  so  they  nabbed  him.  It's  all 
up  with  him  now." 

"Is  it  a  scrag,  d'ye  think?" 

"It's  all  one;  he's  of  no  mWe  use  to  us.  "We  must 
think  now  of  the  job;  what's  to  be  done  next?" 

"  I'll  be  hanged  if  I  know.  What's  the  use  of  keep- 
ing the  girl  stowed  away,  now  that  Jack's  done  up  ?'' 

"Oh,  it's  not  Jack's  work,"  said  yellow  jacket;  "he's 
only  second  fiddle;  there's  a  swell  at  the  bottom  of  it, 
and  he  don't  spare  money,  as  you  know." 

"  But  what's  the  game  ?"  said  the  other ;  "  one  don't 
like  to  go  blindfold  to  work  in  this  way.  Do  they  want 
to  put  the  girl  out  of  the  way — that's  the  long  and  the 
short  of  it  ?" 

"  I  guess  it's  something  like  it,"  said  yellow  jacket. 
"  You  see  she's  very  much  in  the  way  at  present,  at  least 
so  Jack  said.  There's  something  about  estates  in  Eng- 
land that  she  has  a  right  to,  but  Jack  couldn't  well 
make  out  the  whole  secret.  We  were  all  to  be  well  paid 
for  it,  and  that's  enough  for  us  to  know ;  we  have  only 
to  do  the  trick." 

"  Then  that's  not  the  trick  for  me,"  rejoined  the  other ; 
"I  know  I'm  book'd  fur  Macquarie  Harbour,  if  I'm 
caught,  let  alone  this  job ;  but  the  Gypsey  was  a  good 
friend  to  the  prisoners,  and  he  died  game;  and  I'll  have 
no  hand  in  harming  his  child.  As  to  keeping  her  close 
for  a  while,  that's  nothing;  but  I  want  to  know  what 


350  A  Plot  Discovered. 

they're  at  ?     And  why  was  it  that  Black  Jack  tried  to 
escape  just  at  this  time,  when  he's  wanted?" 

"That's  more  than  I  can  tell,"  said  yellow  jacket; 
"  but  I've  got  a  scrap  of  paper  from  him." 

"  Ha !  how  was  that?     What  does  he  say?" 

"  Here's  the  paper;  but  it  doesn't  tell  much." 

"  Get  a  light,  and  let  us  look  at  it." 

I  now  redoubled  my  attention,  and  I  became  aware  by 
the  liffht  that  gleamed  through  the  cracks  of  the  shutter 
that  the  letter  was  being  perused. 

"Well,"  said  yellow  jacket,  "what  do  you  think 
of  it?" 

"  It  doesn't  say  much : — 

"  '  If  I  am  taken,  carry  this  letter  to  the  red-house 
in  Emu-street,  and  the  bearer  will  receive  a  handsome 
reward.'  " 

"I  suppose,"  said  yellow  jacket,  "  that  you  will  not 
attempt  to  take  it?" 

"  No,  not  I ;  the  town  is  too  hot  for  me ;  you  must  do 
it ;  and  as  to  the  reward,  I  suppose  I  must  trust  to  you 
for  my  share  of  it." 

"  Never  fear,  that  will  be  all  right :  but  I  must  be  going 
now ;  I  must  show  myself  by  seven  o'clock." 

"  Then  I'll  be  oiF,  too;  when  shall  we  meet  again?" 

"  Be  here  to-morrow,  at  the  same  time,  and  make  the 
same  signal." 

"I  will." 

The  window-shutter  was  now  opened,  and  I  slipped 
round  the  corner,  and  lay  hid  at  the  side  of  the  house. 
The  stranger,  without  waiting  to  look  behind  him,  and 
indeed  it  was  too  dark  for  him  to  see  much,  hastily 
retreated  in  the  direction  of  the  bush.     As  soon  as  he 


Important  Letter  Out  A  iNED.  351 

was  at  some  distance,  I  resumed  my  position  under  the 
shutter,  and  I  observed  by  the  light  that  it  was  not 
quite  closed.  Prompted  by  a  powerful  curiosity,  I  cau- 
tiously raised  myself  up,  and  peeped  through  the  open- 
ing between  the  shutter  and  the  wall.  I  saw  the  man 
in  the  yellow  jacket  lifting  up  a  stone  in  the  floor,  under 
which  he  deposited  a  letter,  which  I  guessed  was  the 
same  to  which  allusion  was  made  in  their  conversation. 
Having  done  this,  and  trodden  down  the  stone  so  as 
to  efface  any  appearance  of  its  having  been  disturbed, 
he  quitted  the  house  to  the  right,  and  returned  into  the 
town. 

After  waiting  a  short  time  to  guard  against  being  sur- 
prised by  his  sudden  return,  I  entered  the  house.  It  was 
dark,  but  I  had  noted  the  spot,  and  I  easily  found  the 
stone,  and  raised  it  with  my  fingers.  I  seized  the  letter 
with  no  small  satisfaction,  and  taking  the  left  hand  road, 
I  deliberated  with  myself  on  my  way  into  the  town  what 
step  I  should  take  next.  I  resolved  to  lose  no  time 
in  communicating  the  circumstance  to  the  proper  autho- 
rities J  but  first  I  thought  I  would  try  the  effect  of  the 
letter  on  the  mysterious  inhabitant  of  the  red-house,  be- 
fore he  could  be  put  on  his  guard.  I  examined  the  let- 
ter ;  it  had  no  address,  and  it  was  closed  with  a  wafer, 
and  also  sealed  with  wax,  with  the  initials  rudely  cu- 
graved  of  I.  S. 

I  deliberated  with  myself  as  I  walked  along,  whether 
I  should  open  the  letter,  and  get  at  the  information  it 
contained;  but  I  considered  that  it  was  probably  so 
worded  as  to  be  intelligible  only  to  the  party  to  whom  it 
was  addressed,  and  that  the  breaking  of  the  seal  might 
awaken  alarm,  and  prevent  me  from  arriving  at  the  know- 


352  I  Disguise  Myself, 

ledge  of  facts  which  inia;ht  be  communicated  to  me  as  a 
supposed  party  in  the  confederacy.  With  that  view  I 
thought  it  best  to  deliver  the  letter  unopened,  and  act 
according  to  circumstances,  for  if  it  came  to  the  worst,  I 
thought  that  I  could  seize  on  the  letter  before  I  left  the 
house,  and  so  get  at  its  contents. 

I  repaired,  therefore,  to  a  friend's  house,  and  told  him 
that  I  was  engaged  in  an  affair  which  required  disguise. 
My  friend  could  not  avoid  exhibiting  considerable  sur- 
prise at  this  request,  but  he  was  too  polite  to  give  ex- 
pression to  his  thoughts,  further  than  to  hum  in  a  sub- 
dued tone  the  well-known  air  of  ''Mr.  Lobsti."  I  let 
him  have  his  joke,  for  I  was  too  intent  on  my  project  to 
mind  his  chaffing,  and  he  soon  furnished  me  with  a 
sailor's  dress,  which,  with  a  very  small,  and  very  round 
hat,  having  an  abominable  fishy  smell,  changed  my  ap- 
pearance from  a  respectable,  middle-aged  settler,  to  that 
of  a  sort  of  fresh  water  sailor. 

My  friend  strongly  recommended  me  to  wash  my 
hands  in  a  tar-bucket,  to  give  a  better  resemblance  to 
the  character,  and  hinted  that  a  slight  application  of  the 
same  substance  to  my  face  and  whiskers  would  assist  in 
the  personation  of  my  now  character.  I  declined  these 
kind  suggestions,  but  I  thought  it  advisable  to  acquiesce 
in  a  huge  quid,  which  he  thrust  into  my  mouth,  in  or- 
der, as  he  said,  "to  inspire  me  with  some  seafaring 
lingo,"  and  I  was  not  aware  of  the  malice  of  this  latter 
suggestion  until  I  found  myself  getting  sick  with  tlio 
Hastiness  of  the  "  knock-me-down"  tobacco. 

Fortified  by  this  disguise,  I  hastened  to  the  red- 
house,  which  I  found  to  be  of  tolerable  dimensions, 
and   furnished   with    the  aristocratic   appendages  of  a 


Carry  out  my  0 k j e c t .  353 

bell  and  knocker.  Not  wishing  to  appear  presuming, 
I  left  the  knocker  alone,  and  applied  myself  to  the 
bell,  at  which  I  gave  a  vigorous  and  sailor-like  pull, 
and  waited  with  no  small  anxiety  for  an  answer  to  my 
summons- 
23 


First  Appearance  in  a  new  Character— The  Disguise  discovered — 
The  Struggle— Three  to  One  too  much— An  Apartment  for  a 
Single  Gentleman. 

It  was  about  nine  o'clock,  and  the  night  was  very 
cold.  Some  light  fleecy  flakes  had  begun  to  fall,  just 
sufficient  to  spread  a  thin  white  carpet  over  the  ground, 
and  from  the  dense  clouds  which  hid  Mount  Wellington 
from  the  sight,  I  anticipated  a  heavy  fall  of  snow. 

As  I  stood  with  my  hands  in  my  pockets,  and  the 
abominable  quid  in  my  mouth,  assuming  as  well  as  I 
could  the  air  of  a  sailor,  and  balancing  myself  as  I  have 
observed  sailors  do  on  land,  as  if  they  missed  the  mo- 
tion, with  my  legs  stretched  out  apart,  and  my  toes 
turned  in,  I  could  not  help  admiring  at  the  odd  variety 
of  adventures  in  which  I  had  been  engaged,  very  unlike 
the  dull  plodding  life  of  an  old  Surrey  farmer ;  and  now 
I  found  myself  embarked  in  an  affair  about  a  little  girl 
whom  I  had  never  seen,  which  seemed  likely,  to  judge 
from  the  beginning,  to  turn  out  an  awkward  business  to 
interfere  in. 

All  these  thoughts  passed  through  my  mind  while  I 
was  waiting  for  the  door  to  be  opened ;  and  I  wondered 
then,  as  I  have  often  wondered  since,  on  the  number  of 
by-gone  scenes  which  can  be  conjured  up  by  the  imagi- 
nation in  a  very  short  time,  the  events  of  a  lifetime  be- 
ing re-actcd  as  it  were  in  a  moment.     But  this  contem- 

(364) 


My  New  CnARACTER.  855 

plation  is  too  deep  for  a  plain  man  like  me,  who  has  not 
had  the  advantage  of  book-learning  in  my  early  years, 
though  I  sometimes  think  tliat  the  experience  of  actual 
life  is  worth  more  than  all  the  book-learning  in  the 
world — so  I  leave  this  inquiry  to  the  philosophers  to 
explain  if  they  can. 

One  thought,  however,  came  suddenly  on  me  like  a 
puzzle,  and  it  gave  me  a  shock  like  striking  one's  plough 
against  an  old  stump  of  a  tree  that  you  didn't  expect,  and 
that  was,  that  I  had  neglected  to  ascertain  the  name  of 
the  occupier  of  the  red-house,  and  that  I  should  look  very 
foolish  if  I  should  be  asked  who  I  wanted  to  see.  But 
it  was  too  late  to  deliberate,  for  I  heard  the  lock  shot 
back,  and  the  door  opening,  a  woman,  who  from  the 
glimpse  I  caught  of  her  face  by  a  light  in  the  passage, 
seemed  very  old  and  very  ugly,  put  to  me  the  very  in- 
convenient question  that  I  apprehended. 

"  Who  are  you  wanting  to  see,  pray  ?" 

I  shall  be  in  a  mess  here,  thought  I,  if  I  don't  mind; 
so  taking  a  hint  from  the  advice  that  I  heard  a  lawyer 
give  one  day,  that  "  when  you  can't  reply  to  a  question, 
answer  it  by  asking  another,"  I  said  whisperingly,  ''  Is 
he  at  home  ?" 

"  Is  who  at  home  ?"  said  the  perverse  old  woman. 

"Who?"  said  I;  "Why  him;  don't  you  know?" 
Ilere  I  tried  to  recollect  some  seafaring  phrase,  but  for 
the  life  of  me  I  could  think  of  nothing  but  "  shiver  my 
timbers;"  and  that  observation  somehow  didn't  seem 
appropriate  to  the  occasion.  So  I  contented  myself  by 
replying,  "  I  've  got  a  letter  for  him." 

"  A  letter !     Eh  !  give  it  to  me." 

"  Beg  pardon,"  said  I :  "avast  there  !  that's  what  I 


356  Take  the  Letter. 

can't  do  by  no  manner  of  means  (I  flattered  myself  that 
this  style  was  the  real  thing) ;  I  was  told  to  give  it  into 
the  gentleman's  own  hands,  that  is,  if  he's  got  any;  so 
I  clapped  my  helm  hard  a-starboard  (what  this  meant  I 
didn't  exactly  know,  but  I  was  obliged  to  chance  it),  and 
here  I  am  come  into  port." 

I  saw  that  the  old  lady  was  considerably  struck  by  my 
display  of  nautical  phraseology;  so  to  follow  up  the 
favourable  impression,  and  to  keep  up  my  character,  I 
gave  the  quid — which  during  this  brief  colloquy  I  had 
stuck  scientifically  into  my  cheek,  producing  thereby  I 
trusted  a  forecastle  cast  of  countenance — a  determined 
squeeze  with  my  teeth,  which  almost  made  me  vomit; 
and  committing  an  Americanism  with  a  knowing  sort  of 
air,  I  gave  a  professional  hitch  to  my  trousers,  and  waited 
for  a  reply. 

"  You  nasty  beast,"  said  the  old  woman,  in  a  shrill 
tone,  and  retreating  down  the  passage ;  "  how  dare  you 
foul  people's  houses  with  your  filthy  tobacco  juice ;  do 
you  think  I  've  nothing  to  do  but  to  clean  after  filthy 
sea-sailor  men,  you  dirty -seaweed  ?" 

"What's  the  matter?"  said  a  voice  from  the  parlour 
door,  which  was  now  opened;  "what's  all  this  noise 
about  at  this  time  of  night  ?" 

"Noise!  here's  a  nasty  sailor  spitting  into  people's 
houses,  and  he  says  he  's  got  a  letter  for  you." 

"  Yes,  sir,"  said  I ;  "  I  've  got  a  letter  for  you — that 
is,  if  you  're  the  gentleman  it 's  meant  for ;  and  if  you 
are,  of  course  you  know  it 's  right  for  me  to  be  cautious 
who  I  give  it  to." 

"Shut  the  door,"  said  he,  quickly,  to  the  old  woman; 
"  lock  it ;  draw  the  bolts.  There,  now  (to  me),  come 
in,  come  in." 


Proceed  Cautiously.  357 

T  found  myself  in  a  small  decently-furnished  room, 
with  nothing  particular  in  its  appearance.  There  was 
another  door  opposite  to  that  by  which  I  had  entered, 
but  it  did  not  strike  me  as  being  unusual  or  suspicious. 

"Now,"  said  my  host,  in  a  rough  way,  ''  where 's  the 
letter?" 

I  glanced  at  him  to  see  what  sort  of  a  looking  person 
he  was,  and  I  must  say  that  his  appearance  was  not  at  all 
in  his  favour.  He  was  about  forty  years  of  age,  dressed 
in  a  rusty  black  coat  and  waistcoat,  with  a  red  handker- 
chief round  his  neck ;  I  noted  that  he  had  on  drab-col- 
ourcd  trousers,  with  black  gaiters ;  altogether  his  dress 
struck  me  as  if  it  was  a  disguise,  for  there  was  some- 
thing incongruous  between  a  certain  air  that  he  had  and 
the  clothes  that  he  wore;  they  seemed  to  sit  on  him  as  if 
he  was  not  used  to  them.  I  fancied  also  that  the  rough- 
ness of  his  manner  was  assumed,  and  I  remarked  that 
the  hand  which  he  held  forward  to  receive  the  letter  he 
expected  from  me  was  white  and  delicate.  His  counte- 
nance was  not  the  countenance  of  an  ordinary  man,  and 
it  reminded  me  obscurely  of  some  face  that  I  had  seen 
before,  but  I  could  not  bring  to  my  recollection  where 
or  when ;  I  should  have  thought  it  rather  handsome  than 
otherwise,  if  it  had  not  been  for  a  peculiar  expression 
which  I  can  describe  no  better  than  by  saying  it  gave 
one  the  idea  that  he  was  always  plotting  something,  and 
was  fearful  of  detection.  He  repeated  his  doinaud 
sharply : — 

"  Give  me  the  letter." 

''  Excuse  me,  sir,"  said  I,  "  if  I  appear  disrespectful, ' 
but  I  should  like  to  be  sure  that  you  are  the  gentleman 
for  whom   the  letter  is  intended.     Perhaps  you  would 


358  Close  Questioning. 

tell  me  your  name  (he  looked  at  me  searchlngly),  to 
see,"  I  added  boldly,  ''  if  it  corresponds  with  the  name 
on  the  letter." 

He  turned  his  eye  to  the  door  on  the  other  side  of  the 
room,  and  seemed  to  be  considering  for  a  second  or  two, 
whether  he  should  do  something  that  he  had  a  mind  toj 
but  he  altered  his  intention,  and  turning  to  me  : — 

"Well,"  said  he,  "my  name — to  be  sure,  why 
shouldn't  I  tell  you  my  name?  You  know  my  name, 
of  course  ?" 

"You  may  guess,"  said  I,  "that  I  shouldn't  have 
been  trusted  with  this  letter  if  I  wasn't  in  the  secret. 
But  the  risk  is  too  great,"  I  added,  "as  you  know," 
looking  hard  at  him,  "  for  any  one  of  us  to  trifle  with 
the  consequences.  Before  I  give  up  the  letter,"  said  I, 
in  a  determined  way,  "  I  must  be  sure  that  you  are  the 
right  person." 

"  And  pray,"  said  he,  "  what  is  yours  ?" 

Here  was  a  puzzler !  I  was  all  of  a  sudden,  as  the 
sailors  say,  "  taken  aback,"  and  I  almost  lost  my  pre- 
sence of  mind ;  at  the  moment  I  did  not  know  what  name 
to  take,  but  as  I  was  obliged  to  give  some  one  without 
delay,  for  I  felt  that  any  hesitation  on  that  point  would 
excite  suspicion,  I  gave  my  right  one. 

"  William  Thornley." 

"  Is  that  a  purser's  name,  or  the  true  one  ?" 

"  The  true  one,"  said  I;  "  and  I  give  it  you  at  once,' 
to  show  that  as  we  arc  all  bound  up  together,  the  best 
way  is  to  trust  one  another." 

"  Indeed  !"  said  he ;  "  and  so  it's  come  to  this ;  but 
we — yes,  we  are  all  alike  now,  I  suppose.  We — we 
must  all  trust  one  another  !     Come,  we  can't  be  all  night 


Give  the  Letter.  859 

about  this  matter.  I  am  known  by  the  name  of  John 
Wolscy ;  will  that  do  for  you  V 

"  Thought  I  to  myself,  it  must,  for  I  can't  make 
anything  more  of  it."     I  gave  him  the  letter. 

Jle  looked  at  the  place  where  he  expected  to  find  the 
address,  but  there  was  none. 

''  How  is  this,"  said  he,  coming  a  step  forward,  "  there 
is  no  name  on  the  letter,  and  you  have  made  me  give  you 
mine?" 

"Look  at  the  seal,"  said  I,  at  a  loss  to  escape  from  the 
difficulty. 

He  held  it  to  the  candle. 

"That  is  right,"  said  he,  "but  there  is  something 
about  you,  my  friend,  that  I  do  not  understand.  Sit 
down  while  I  read  the  letter." 

He  opened  and  read  it ;  and  its  contents  seemed  to 
give  him  satisfaction,  which  was  presently  succeeded  by 
an  expression  of  doubt  and  anxiety. 

"  You  know  the  contents  of  this  letter?"  said  he. 

''  Of  course,"  said  I. 

''  And  the  letter  says  that  you  are  acquainted  with  th« 
interior  of  the  country." 

"  Pretty  well  for  that,"  said  I ;  not  knowing  what  was 
meant  by  the  question. 

"  Do  you  think  you  could  guide  me  this  night  to  the 
spot  where  they  have  taken  her  ?" 

"  Easily,"  said  I,  at  a  venture,  and  my  flesh  quivered 
on  my  bones  to  learn  what  would  come  next,  for  I 
guessed  I  had  got  hold  of  the  clue  to  the  Gypsey's  daughter. 

"  At  the  ruined  hut,  near  Seven-mile  Beach,"  said  ho, 
musingly.     "  Can  you  ride  on  horseback  ?" 

"  I  have  done  nothing  else  all  my  life,"  said  I,  thrown 


360  Am  Discovered! 

off  my  guard  by  the  suddenness  of  the  question.  The 
moment  after  I  was  conscious  of  my  error,  but  it  was 
too  late. 

"All  your  life  on  horseback!"  exclaimed  my  host. 
*'  How  is  this  ?  Let  me  look  at  your  hands.  Ha — you 
are  no  sailor.  You  have  deceived  me — there  is  treachery 
here.  Who,  and  what  are  you,  man  ?  Speak  !  I  have 
the  means  of  forcing  from  you  the  truth.  What  is  your 
object?  Why  do  you  come  here?  and  from  whom  did 
you  receive  this  letter  ?" 

He  opened  the  door  behind  him  as  he  spoke,  and 
called  out.  I  felt  that  the  decisive  moment  was  come, 
and  that  all  that  remained  for  me  to  do  was  to  get  pos- 
session of  the  letter,  which  was  lying  open  on  the  table. 
I  made  a  clutch  at  it,  and  seized  it  before  this  Mr.  Wol- 
sey  could  prevent  me,  but  at  the  same  moment  two  men 
appeared  in  answer  to  his  call.  I  rushed  to  the  door 
leading  to  the  passage,  and  opening  it,  I  gained  the 
street  door ;  but  it  was  dark,  and  I  could  not  readily 
find  the  way  of  undoing  the  bolts  by  which  it  was 
fastened.  In  the  meantime  the  two  men  grappled  with 
nK.  I  caught  hold  of  the  door-chain,  and  struggled 
hard,  kicking  at  the  door,  and  shouting  with  all  my 
might  for  assistance. 

"  Knock  him  on  the  head,"  said  a  voice,  which  I  re- 
cognised as  that  of  the  host  of  the  red-house.  In  this 
extremity  I  drew  out  one  of  the  pistols  with  which  I  was 
provided,  but  before  I  could  use  it,  I  felt  a  violent  blow 
on  my  head,  given,  I  fancy,  by  some  clastic  instrument, 
like  one  of  those  powerful  and  destructive  weapons 
called  a  "life-preserver."  I  immediately  fell  down 
stunned. 


Perilous  Position  3G1 

When  I  recovered,  I  found  myself  in  tlie  dark,  I  did 
not  know  where.  I  felt  an  aching  pain  in  my  head,  and 
I  was  very  cold  and  sick.  I  endeavoured  to  raise  myself 
up,  but  in  attempting  to  rise,  I  struck  my  head  against 
the  brickwork  above,  which  nearly  ,stunned  me  again. 
"When  I  recovered  myself,  I  readied  about  as  I  lay,  and 
conjectured  that  I  was  in  a  sort  of  vault  or  cellar,  for  I 
felt  nothing  but  bricks,  which  were  cold  and  damp,  and 
arched  over  my  head. 

I  confess  I  was  in  great  terror,  fearing  the  worst,  as  I 
could  not  doubt  that  those  who  had  me  in  their  power 
would  not  hesitate  to  take  away  my  life  without  scruple, 
if  they  thought  it  necessary  for  their  own  safety.  This 
dismal  thought  made  me  repent  having  so  rashly  encoun- 
tered such  an  adventure  in  the  night-time,  and  under 
circumstances  so  suspicious. 

The  buoyancy  of  my  spirits,  however,  sustained  me 
even  in  this  perilous  position,  and  as  soon  as  I  could 
gather  my  senses  together,  I  began  to  cast  about  me  how 
to  escape  from  my  confinement.  I  thought  of  my  friend 
who  had  helped  me  to  my  sailor's  dress,  and  who  had 
been  so  facetious  in  disguising  me,  and  wondered  whether 
curiosity  or  any  other  feeling  would  prompt  him  to  seek 
after  me  if  I  did  not  return  in  reasonable  time.  But 
that  seemed  an  unlikely  thing  to  happen,  and  at  any 
rate  he  would  not  learn  till  the  morning,  when  he  might 
make  inquiries  after  me  at  my  inn,  perhaps;  and  what 
was  to  become  of  me  the  meanwhile  ?  for  I  calculated 
that  my  swoon  could  not  have  lasted  more  than  half  an 
hour  at  most :  so  that  it  wanted  five  or  six  hours  to 
morning,  and  when  the  morning  came,  it  wouM  bring 
no  daylight  to  me  in  my  cavern. 


3G2  Buried  Alive! 

This  thought  disturbed  me  sadly,  but  I  did  not  lose 
heart.  There  was  a  great  bump  on  my  head,  which 
pained  me  a  good  deal,  but  there  was  no  blood,  and  my 
hands  were  free.  Thought  I  to  myself,  "  while  there  is 
life  there  is  hope."  I  felt  about,  and  found  that  I  was 
confined,  as  I  at  first  conjectured,  in  a  sort  of  vault  or 
cellar,  about  four  feet  high,  and  as  well  as  I  could  mea- 
sure as  I  crawled  about,  ten  or  twelve  feet  long,  and  five 
or  six  broad.  I  examined  with  my  hands  the  bottom, 
and  sides,  and  top  of  my  prison  all  over,  but  I  could 
discover  no  place  of  outlet,  which  surprised  me  exceed- 
ingly. I  examined  it  again  with  great  minuteness,  but 
it  seemed  to  me  nothing  but  rough  brickwork,  as  well 
as  I  could  make  out.  I  was  puzzled  at  this,  for  I 
could  not  make  out  how  I  had  got  in. 

My  examination  of  the  vault  tired  me  very  much,  and 
I  felt  myself  getting  more  sick  and  faint,  which  I  at- 
tributed to  the  closeness  of  the  vault.  I  was  at  a  loss 
what  to  do.  I  feared  that  if  I  remained  long  in  that  hor- 
rible den  I  should  be  suffocated.  In  this  state  minutes 
seemed  hours,  and  I  felt  myself  falling  into  a  sort  of 
phrenzy  of  excitement. 

Strengthened  at  last  by  my  very  despair,  I  determined 
to  search  again,  and  in  passing  my  hands  over  the  damp 
brickwork,  some  of  the  mortar  at  a  particular  place  at  the 
top  felt  softer  than  elsewhere.  The  horrible  conviction 
now  came  over  me,  that  my  murderers  had  bricked  up 
my  prison-hole,  and  that  I  was  buried  alive  i 


Cljfliitn  '(tbljirtii'-tliijK 

Necessity  the  Mother  of  Invention — Advantage  of  a  Good  Mem- 
ory— An  Anatomical  Experiment — Courage  and  Perseverance 
overcome  all  DiflSculties — An  unexpected  Meeting — The  Mys- 
terious Letter  gives  a  clue  to  a  Hiding-place — Search  of  the  Red- 
House. 

I  REMAINED  stupified  for  some  time  at  my  helpless 
condition,  and  I  suffered  from  pain  in  my  head  very 
much  ;  but  as  it  was  too  probable  that  no  help  would 
come  from  without  in  time  to  save  uie,  I  felt  that  I  must 
find  the  resource  from  within  myself.  I  roused  up  my 
faculties,  and  by  dint  of  thinking  and  revolving  over  and 
over  again  all  possible  means  of  escape,  I  hit  upon  something 
at  last.  If,  I  reasoned,  the  ruffians  who  had  me  in  their 
power,  have  bricked  up  so  recently  the  opening  through 
which  they  had  thrust  me,  the  mortar  must  be  still  un- 
set and  soft,  and  the  bricks  might,  with  a  little  labour 
on  my  part,  be  displaced.  With  that  thought  I  felt  in 
my  pocket  for  my  bush-knife,  and  in  feeling  for  the  knife 
I  found  the  letter  which  had  led  to  my  disaster. 

I  felt  quite  glad  at  this  even  in  my  dismal  dungeon, 
for  at  any  rate  I  had  got  the  letter  safe,  though  it  was 
of  no  use  to  me  in  the  dark,  and  whether  I  should  ever 
live  to  take  advantage  of  it  was  very  doubtful.  I  put 
it  as  carefully  by,  though,  as  if  it  was  a  matter  of  per- 
sonal  importance   to  myself,  for  I  had  got   interested 

(363) 


361  My   Spirits  Eevive. 

about  the  girl  thiit  occasioned  me  such  a  mishap,  and  I 
believe  there  was  something  in  the  pertinacity  of  my 
disposition  that  supported  my  courage,  for  all  through 
life  I  never  began  a  thing  without  being  determined  to 
go  through  with  it. 

I  did  not  like  to  be  baulked  or  defeated  in  anything 
that  I  undertook,  and  having  gone  through  great  perils 
before,  and  having  escaped  from  danger  and  from  death 
so  imminent  and  seemingly  so  certain,  that  I  had  given 
myself  up  for  lost,  I  thought  that  I  might  escape  again, 
sore  as  was  the  strait  in  which  I  was  then  cast. 

Fortunately  my  big  knife  was  safe  in  my  pocket,  and, 
to  my  still  greater  surprise,  one  of  my  pistols,  with  a 
small  flask  of  powder  and  some  balls.  This  latter  dis- 
covery convinced  me  that  my  enemies  had  some  potent 
and  pressing  reason  for  concealing  me  without  delay, 
supposing  me  dead,  perhaps,  and  that,  as  their  object 
was  not  plunder,  but  merely  to  secure  me  out  of  the 
way,  they  had  not  taken  the  trouble,  or  had  not  had 
time  to  search  me ;  and  that  tlie  bricking  up  of  the  vault 
was  done  in  order  to  prevent  my  being  discovered.  How- 
ever that  might  be,  the  finding  of  my  knife,  and  espe- 
cially the  pistol,  acted  as  a  powerful  encouragement  to 
me,  as  in  the  case  of  any  attack  being  made  on  me  in  my 
cavern,  or  on  my  getting  out,  I  felt  that  I  had  the  means 
of  defending  myself,  for  my  knife  was  an  effective  weapon 
of  itself.  Having  first  ascertained  that  my  pistol  was 
loaded,  and  that  the  charge  was  home,  and  having  felt 
the  priming  with  my  finger,  and  found  it  right  and  dry, 
I  set  about  the  task  of  delivering  myself  from  my  prison. 

I  could  not  sit  upright,  go  I  was  obliged  to  work  on  my 
knees  in  a  very  inconvenient  position.     I  easily  scraped 


Determined  Exertions.  365 

away  the  mortar  from  between  some  of  the  bricks,  but  I 
found  them  so  tightly  wedged  together,  that  I  could  not 
stir  them,  and  to  cut  an  opening  with  my  knife  seemed 
an  endless  job,  for  the  bricks  were  as  hard  as  flints. 

I  laid  myself  down  to  consider  what  I  should  do,  and  to 
rest  myself,  for  the  position  was  so  ftitiguing  that  I  could 
not  work  for  more  than  a  minute  or  two  together.  My 
head  was  very  painful,  and  I  felt  a  sufi"ocating  sensation 
about  the  temples  that  almost  deteniiiued  me  to  make 
myself  bleed  somewhere  to  relieve  the  pressure  of  blood 
on  the  brain. 

I  was  sorely  perplexed  what  to  do,  and  tried  again  with 
my  knife  on  the  bricks,  but  I  could  make  nothing  of  it; 
all  of  a  sudden  it  struck  me  that  as  the  weight  pres.sed 
downwards,  and  as  the  strength  of  the  arch  was  iu  that 
direction,  if  I  could  apply  a  force  upwards,  it  might  raise 
up  the  weight  of  bricks  which  had  not  had  time  to  be- 
come firmly  cemented  together  by  the  setting  of  the  mor- 
tar. But  how  to  do  it  was  the  question  ?  I  could  not 
stand  upright  to  give  the  bricks  a  push,  and  I  had  no 
strength  in  my  arms  while  bending  on  my  knees. 

As  I  was  thinking  with  all  my  might  how  to  manage  it, 
I  remembered  to  have  read  a  story  of  some  mutineers 
having  confined  the  captain  and  ofiicers  below  the  deck  on 
board  ship,  and  that  by  exerting  the  force  of  the  muscles 
of  their  backs  all  at  the  same  time,  with  a  simultaneous 
effort,  they  burst  up  the  hatchway.  Whether  there  was 
any  truth  in  that  story  I  do  not  know,  but  I  resolved  to 
try  the  same  experiment.  I  put  myself  under  the  centre 
of  the  recent  brickwork,  and  then,  straightening  my 
back,  I  made  a  powerful  effort,  and  the  superstructure 
gave  way.  A  loosening  once  made,  I  soon  cleared  away 
sufficient  bricks  to  admit  of  my  exit. 


366  Escape  from  the  Vault. 

It  was  quite  dark,  and  I  had  do  idea  where  I  was,  but 
I  judged  I  could  not  be  far  from  the  spot  where  I  had 
been  struck  down.  I  scrambled  out  of  the  vault,  and 
stood  upright.  Feeling  about  me,  I  met  a  wall  of  brick, 
roughly  plastered,  apparently,  which  was  higher  than  I 
could  reach.  I  knew  I  was  in  some  sort  of  room  or 
storehouse,  as,  had  it  been  in  the  open  air,  I  could  have 
Been  the  sky. 

Groping  my  way  cautiously  along,  and  fearing  to  fall 
into  some  pit,  I  came  to  the  end  of  the  wall,  and  continu- 
ing my  way  at  right  angles,  I  came  to  a  massive  door, 
which  was  fastened.  I  soon  found  the  lock,  and  ascer- 
tained that  it  was  a  huge  lock  of  coarse  manufacture,  put 
on  the  inside,  to  secure  the  door  from  without.  It  was  too 
strong  for  my  knife  to  force,  and  in  the  attempt  I  should 
only  have  broken  the  blade,  which  I  wanted  as  a  weapon, 
for  1  did  not  know  what  resistance  I  might  meet  with  ; 
so  I  felt  all  over  the  floor,  in  the  middle  of  which  was 
the  vault  from  which  I  had  escaped,  for  some  means  of 
forcing  the  lock. 

1  found  in  the  furthermost  corner  a  whole  heap  of  all 
sorts  of  things ;  bits  of  iron,  pieces  of  wood,  and  odds  and 
ends  of  nails,  and  staves  of  casks,  and  old  iron  hoops, 
which  showed  that  this  strange  apartment  had  been  used 
as  a  place  to  cast  lumber  in.  I  selected  from  the  heap 
of  materials  what  I  thought  suited  to  the  purpose,  and 
applying  myself  to  the  lock,  I  soon  forced  off"  the  hasp, 
and  opened  the  door.  "Now,"  thought  I,  "is  the  mo- 
ment of  danger,  and  I  must  be  prepared."  Holding  part 
of  an  iron  crow-bar  in  my  right  hand,  and  having  my 
pistol  handy  for  use,  I  peered  cautiously  through  the 
open  door.     It  opened  into  the  air.     I  extended  my  left 


I  Wait  fou  Daylight.  367 

hand,  and  advancing  a  step  or  two,  I  came  upon  a  wall, 
■which  I  conjectured  to  be  the  wall  of  the  red-house.  It 
was  pitch  dark,  but  the  snow  had  fallen  abundantly, 
and  I  could  trace  by  its  white  mark  the  line  of  the  op- 
posite building. 

The  fresh  air  revived  me  wonderfully.  All  was  still, 
and  I  could  discover  nothing  by  the  eye  or  the  ear  to  give 
me  any  information.  I  felt  along  the  side  of  the  house, 
and  found  a  door  opposite  the  one  which  I  had  forced 
open.  I  listened,  but  I  could  hear  nothing.  Being  de- 
sirous of  avoiding  the  house,  I  felt  all  round  about,  but 
could  discover  no  other  means  of  exit  but  that  door. 

I  did  not  like  the  venture,  so  I  went  back  into  my  old 
lumber-room,  and  sat  down  on  the  arch  of  the  vault  to 
consider  what  I  had  best  do.  I  had  no  great  fear  of 
being  surprised,  or  of  being  easily  overcome  where  I  was, 
being  armed,  and  having  the  advantage  of  position  to  re- 
sist my  attack. 

Besides,  I  calculated  that  if  I  tired  off  my  pistol,  it 
would  most  likely  give  an  alarm,  and  bring  assistance  to 
me,  though  T  did  not  depend  inuch  on  that,  for  I  might 
be  murdered  by  numbers  before  help  could  reach  me,  and 
the  detection  and  hanging  of  the  rascals  after  my  death, 
although  it  would  be  a  great  satisfaction  to  justice,  would 
be  no  satisfaction  to  me.  Under  tliese  circumstances  I 
thought  it  would  be  best  to  remain  quiet  and  leave  well 
alone,  and  wait  for  daylight,  for  let  the  night  be  ever 
so  long,  the  morning  must  come  at  last. 

It  seemed  longer  in  coming  that  night  thanever  it  was 
before,  and  I  never  suffered  so  much  from  cold  and 
anxiety  as  on  that  wretched  night ;  but  the  cold  was  the 
worst,  for  as  there  was  not  .^pacc  enough  to  allow  me  to 


368  Morning  Dawns. 

walk  about  to  keep  myself  warm,  I  was  obliged  to  sit 
Btill  and  bear  it.  I  had  a  mind  once  or  twice  to  creep 
into  my  vault  again  for  warmth's  sake,  but  the  idea  of  it 
revolted  me ;  I  was  too  glad  to  be  out  to  get  in  again 
voluntarily. 

Tn  this  way  I  passed  the  night,  longing  for  the  morn- 
ing; I  looked  out  of  my  door  now  and  then  to  listen. 
The  night  was  bright,  and  the  frost  crisped  the  snow, 
which  lay  thickish  and  sparkling  on  the  narrow  ledge  of 
ground  between  my  fortress  and  the  red-house.  I  looked 
up  at  the  stars,  and  tried  to  make  out  how  long  it  would 
be  till  morning;  but  I  was  not  astronomer  enough  to  tell 
the  time  of  the  night  from  the  small  space  that  I  could 
see  from  my  confined  yard ;  had  I  been  able  to  see  more 
of  the  heavens  I  could  have  told  pretty  well. 

At  last  I  fell  into  a  sort  of  dose  in  my  lumber-house, 
and  waking  up  in  a  fright  at  catching  myself  asleep,  and 
exposed  to  be  surprised  at  a  disadvantage,  I  observed  to 
my  great  joy  that  I  could  distinguish  the  objects  about 
me,  and  that  the  long-desired  daylight  was  come.  I  can 
scarcely  describe  the  pain  that  T  suffered  from  the  cold  at 
this  time  of  daybreak ;  it  was  so  intense  and  so  exces- 
sively painful  as  to  amount  almost  to  agony :  it  was  the 
cold  I  dare  say  that  waked  me  up. 

It  was  not  the  first  time  that  I  had  felt  the  biting 
sharpness  of  the  cold  of  the  early  morning  in  Van  Die- 
men's  Land,  but  I  never  felt  it  before  in  a  degree  so  pain- 
ful. I  banged  myself  about,  and  stamped  with  my  feet, 
but  it  was  as  much  as  I  could  do  to  recover  myself  suf- 
ficiently to  be  ready  for  action. 

When  I  felt  myself  a  little  restored,  I  looked  about  me 
to  see  how  things  stood.     I  found  that  the  vault  into 


Courage  and  Perseverance.  369 

wliN-6  I  bad  been  tlirust  was,  as  I  thought,  in  the  dark, 
situated  in  the  middle  of  the  storehouse  or  lumber-rouui, 
to  whiih  there  was  no  window  or  other  outlet  except  the 
large  door.  What  the  vault  was  originally  intended  for  I 
could  not  gue.ss,  and  did  not  trouble  niy.self  with  resolv- 
ing, as  I  had  a  more  pressing  matter  to  think  about.  The 
wall  of  this  building  ran  flush  with  the  wall  of  the  house, 
and  was  bounded  on  each  end  by  a  short  wall  about 
twelve  feet  high.  There  was  no  window  at  the  back  of 
the  house ;  nothing  but  the  door  which  I  had  felt  in  the 
dark,  and  which,  on  a  cautious  examination,  I  found 
secured  on  the  inside. 

I  did  not  like  to  attempt  the  forcing  of  that  door,  for  I 
feared  being  overpowered  by  numbers,  before  assistance 
could  reach  me,  so  I  cast  about  to  get  out  of  the  yard  by 
some  means  or  other.  The  wall  was  too  high  to  scale, 
but  I  fancied  if  I  could  steady  the  door  of  my  lumber- 
room,  which  opened  outside,  I  could  get  on  to  the  top 
of  the  building  and  drop  down  into  the  street  ou  the  other 
side. 

The  light  increased  apace,  and  there  was  soon  sufficient 
to  enable  me  to  distinguish  the  heap  of  odds  and  ends  in 
the  corner.  I  took  some  of  the  staves  of  old  casks,  and 
pieces  of  wood  lying  there,  and  silently  jamming  them  be- 
tween the  two  buildings  and  the  door,  I  contrived  to  steady 
it  between  them. 

It  was  no  easy  matter  fur  me  to  get  on  the  top  of  the 
door,  particularly  as  I  was  fearful  of  making  a  noise,  for 
it  was  more  than  six  feet  high,  and  I  was  we:dc  with  my 
night's  watching,  andfrum  the  blow  on  uiy  head,  and  my 
limbs  were  benumbed  with  the  cold ;  but  by  the  aid  of 
the  great  lock,  which  formed  a  convenient  resting-plaoe 
24 


370  My  Escape. 

for  the  foot,  1  got  on  the  edge  of  the  door,  and  mounted 
on  the  roof  of  the  store-room,  which  was  formed  of  strong 
planks,  with  an  inclination  inwards.  It  was  very  slip- 
pery, from  the  snow  which  lay  on  it  nearly  three  inches 
thick. 

I  stood  on  the  wall  and  prepared  to  drop  down  from  it 
into  the  open  space,  beyond  which  was  the  bush,  the 
ground  being  all  covered  with  snow.  As  I  had  need  of 
both  hands  to  assist  me  in  holding  on  by  the  wall,  I  laid 
ray  bit  of  crow-bar  on  the  roof;  but  the  weight  of  the  iron 
caused  it  to  roll  over  the  smooth  boards  through  the  snow, 
and  to  fall  heavily  on  my  apparatus  for  steadying  the 
door,  on  which  it  descended  with  a  crash  sufficient  to  be 
heard  by  the  inmates  within  the  house. 

This  accident  made  me  hasten  my  movements,  but  as 
my  hands  were  cold  and  the  boards  were  slippery,  I  could 
not  immediately  get  into  a  position  preparatory  to  my 
drop,  and  I  was  on  my  hands  and  knees  when  the  door 
of  the  red-house  opened,  and  the  man  in  the  yellow 
jacket,  whom  I  had  observed  on  the  jetty,  and  whose 
conversation  I  had  overheard  the  evening  before,  appeared 
at  the  entrance.  He  made  a  movement  as  if  to  come 
after  me,  but  I  pulled  out  my  pistol,  and  presented  it  at 
him.  He  seemed  scared  at  the  sight  of  the  pistol  or  of 
me,  I  don't  know  which,  for  he  hastily  disappeared  and 
shut  the  door. 

In  a  few  seconds  after  I  dropped  from  the  wall,  and 
although  I  had  a  tumble,  I  got  up  unhurt,  and  instantly 
ran  off  into  the  heart  of  the  town.  I  made  my  way 
straight  to  the  inn,  meeting  no  one  on  the  road,  and  rang 
the  bell  lustily.  Tlie  waiter  was  soon  roused  up,  for  I 
kept  up  a  peal  without  stopping,  and  glad  enough  was  I 
when  I  found  myself  safe  inside. 


The  (J  L  Y  D  E   M  a  c;  i  s  t  r  v  t  e  .  J571 

*'  What's  o'clock?"  was  my  first  inquiry. 

"Just  five,  sir;  we  wondered  you  didn't  come  home 
last  night.  The  magistrate  from  the  Clyde  has  been 
asking  for  you.  He  came  in  about  ten  last  night,  and 
was  very  anxious  to  see  you.  He  sat  up  for  you  a  long 
time,  and  couldn't  make  out  why  it  was  you  did  not  sleep 
here  last  night." 

"  Show  me  to  his  room  directly,"  said  I,  ''  and  don't 
talk  of  my  having  been  out ;  make  a  fire  as  quick  as  you 
can,  and  get  a  cup  of  hot  tea,  and  something  to  eat.  I 
have  business  that  will  take  me  out  again  directly." 

In  another  minute  I  was  in  my  friend's  room. 

*'  Why,  what  on  earth,"  said  he,  "  has  been  the 
matter  ?  You  look  perished ;  what  have  you  been  doing 
all  night  ?" 

I  told  him  in  a  few  words  what  had  happened  to  me. 

"  And  where,"  said  he,  '•■  is  this  mysterious  letter  ?" 

"  Here  it  is  ;  I  have  not  yet  read  it;  do  you  read  it 
for  me  ;  I  can  hardly  see  out  of  my  eyes." 

He  took  the  letter,  and  read  the  following  : — 

"  It's  all  done.  The  gal  is  hid  in  Jim  Burk's  hut  at 
Seven-mile  Beach.  The  schooner  may  easily  take  her 
off  near  there,  but  there's  no  time  to  be  lost,  for  there's 
no  trusting  one  another  in  this  country.  Mike  can  show 
you  to  the  place.     Yours,  J.  S." 

"  It  doesn't  say  much,  but  it  says  enough  for  our 
present  purpose.     Who  is  this  Mike  ?" 

"I  don't  know  ;  perhaps  it's  tlio  Yellow  Jacket." 

"  Or  his  companion  who  went  off  into  the  bush  the 
other  evening?" 

"  Perhaps  so  ;  he  was  to  meet  th  ;  Vcllnw  Jacket  again 
this  evening  about  seven  o'clock." 


372  Search  the  House. 

"  "We'll  provide  for  both  of  them  ;  but  first  we  must 
secure  the  inhabitants  of  the  red-house.  But  we  had 
better  do  things  quietly.  Are  you  strong  enough  to 
take  a  note  to  the  police  station  ?  if  so  meet  me  with 
the  constable,  who  will  accompany  you,  at  the  corner  by 
the  post-office,  and  I  will  get  ready  in  the  meantime." 

Taking  a  drink  of  tea,  and  munching  away  at  a  hunch 
of  bread,  I  immediately  proceeded  to  the  police-office, 
where,  at  the  magistrate's  requisition,  I  was  aided  at  once 
by  four  constables,  without  questions,  and,  accompanied 
by  one  of  them,  I  went  to  the  place  of  meeting,  the 
other  three  straggling  singly  to  avoid  remark,  but  keep- 
ing me  in  sight.  It  was  still  early  morning,  and  there 
were  very  few  people  about.  Mount  Wellington  had  a 
fine  white  mantle  spread  over  him,  and  the  morning  was 
brilliant  and  frosty.  I  found  the  magistrate  at  the  spot 
agreed  on,  and  we  immediately  proceeded  to  the  red- 
house. 

"Go  round  to  the  back,"  said  the  magistrate  to  two 
of  the  constables,  "  and  secure  any  one  who  tries  to  es- 
cape ;  if  they  resist,  fire  without  hesitation." 

One  of  the  constables  then  knocked  at  the  door. 

"Do  you  think  we  have  force  enough  ?"  said  I. 

"  Oh  !  plenty  for  the  daytime  ;  besides  we  are  in  reach 
of  assistance  if  we  want  it,  and  these  constables  are  used 
to  the  trade.     They  don't  answer  ;  knock  again." 

"  Try  if  the  door  is  fast." 

"  The  door  seems  fast  enough,  but  we  will  soon  prize 
it  open,  if  your  honour  will  give  the  word." 

"  Knock  and  ring  once  more. No  answer  !  Lose 

no  time,  my  men;  we'll  stand  no  nonsense;  get  open 
the  door  the  shortest  way." 


A  Slight  Clue.  373 

"  Stay,"  said  one  of  the  constables  to  the  other,  who 
was  about  to  apply  a  sort  of  crow-bar  to  wrench  open 
the  door;  "perhaps  they  have  bolted  themselves,  and 
only  locked  the  door;  let  me  try  with  my  quiet  per- 
suader." 

With  this  he  produced  a  bunch  of  large  skeleton  keys, 
and  selecting  one  with  a  sort  of  instinct,  he  applied  it  to 
the  lock,  which  yielded  readily,  and  the  door  stood  open. 

"I  thought  it  was  so,"  said  he;  "they've  bolted." 

*'  Now  search  the  house  carefully,"  said  the  magis- 
trate, "  and  lose  no  time  about  it." 

"We'll  search,"  said  the  constable,  ''but  we  shall 
find  nobody,  you  may  depend  on  it." 

The  house  was  searched  accordingly  from  top  to  bot- 
tom, and  every  cranny  examined,  and  the  flooring  taken 
up,  but  no  one  was  found.  All  this  took  up  some  time, 
and  it  was  now  past  eight  o'clock.  There  was  a  writing- 
desk  in  the  parlour  in  which  I  had  had  the  interview  with 
the  person  who  called  himself  John  Wolsey,  which  was 
open  and  deranged,  as  if  some  papers  had  been  hastily 
abstracted  from  it.  The  magistrate  looked  rapidly 
through  it,  and  then  sealed  it  up,  and  gave  it  into  the 
charge  of  one  of  the  constables.  Various  parts  of  dress 
were  scattered  about  in  the  principal  room,  which  seemed 
to  have  been  left  in  a  hurry,  and  among  them  the  pair 
of  drab  trousers  and  the  black  gaiters  which  I  had  ob- 
served the  evening  before.  1  pointed  them  out,  and  the 
constable,  who  had  opened  the  door  with  his  skeleton 
key,  examined  them  closely. 

"  These  are  country  made,"  said  he,  "I'll  swear,  by 
the  stitches.  Perhaps  the  maker  has  put  his  mark  on 
them,  as  they  do  sometimes  in  the  country  at  home." 


37-1:  Start  in  Pursuit. 

Turning  up  the  waistband,  he  showed  us  a  bit  of 
canvass,  on  which  was  the  words  "  Thomas  Sparks, 
York." 

"It's  very  thoughtless,"  said  the  constable,  proud  of 
his  cleverness,  ''for  a  gentleman  that  is  engaged  in  this 
sort  of  fun  to  go  about  with  breeches  with  a  brand-mark 
on  'em.  We  have  got  a  clue  to  where  these  clothes 
were  made  at  any  rate." 

"York!"  said  the  magistrate;  "that  corresponds 
with  the  information  contained  in  the  Gypsey's  papers. 
Take  care  of  all  these  clothes,  and  especially  of  these 
trousers ;  make  them  into  a  bundle,  and  I  will  put  my 
seal  on  them." 

''And  now,"  said  I,  ''  what's  to  be  done  next?" 

"  The  rogues  have  got  the  start  of  us,"  said  the  mag- 
istrate ;  "  I  should  not  wonder  if  they  have  gone  to  the 
place  of  rendezvous  at  Seven-mile  Beach  ;  we  must  go 
after  them ;  but  first  I  must  provide  for  the  Yellow 
Jacket  and  his  friend,  at  their  meeting  this  evening,  iu 
case  we  should  not  be  back  in  time.  GrO,"  said  he  to 
one  of  the  constables,  "  and  get  the  ferry-boat  ready  to 
cross  over  to  Pitt-Water — the  horse  ferry-boat — we  may 
want  to  ride.  Two  of  you  will  go  with  me  on  a  secret 
expedition." 

We  then  repaired  to  our  inn,  and  having  made  a  hasty 
breakfast,  we  went  down  to  the  jetty,  and,  accompanied 
by  two  of  the  constables,  we  leaped  our  horses  into  the 
ferry-boat,  and  pushed  off  from  the  shore. 


(^Impttr  €liirti[-/nnrtji. 

The   Colonel   Constable  — The    Track  in  the  Snow  — Seven-mile 
Beach— The  Desolate  Hut— The  Discovery— Baulked  again. 

We  urged  the  boatmen  to  make  the  best  of  their  way 
over  the  river  to  the  Pitt- Water  side,  and  the  constables 
assisting,  we  soon  neared  the  opposite  shore. 

"The  snow  lies  thick  on  the  land,"  observed  the 
magistrate. 

"  It  won't  lie  there  long,"  said  one  of  the  boatmen ; 
"  the  wind  has  got  into  the  north,  with  a  little  west- 
ing in  it ;  when  the  sun  comes  out,  the  snow  will  dis- 
appear in  no  time ;  see  how  the  light  air  draws  down 
the  river." 

"Many  persons  passed  this  moming?"  asked  my 
friend, 

"  Not  many;  may  be  half  a  dozen  or  so.  There  was 
one  party  in  a  precious  hurry  to  get  across,  a  little  be- 
fore six  o'clock ;  they  took  a  wherry  and  sculled  over  to 
Kangaroo  Point.  It's  a  shame  to  let  people  go  over 
that  way  when  there's  a  regular  ferry-boat !  Keep  her 
off  the  point  a  bit,  Bill ;  mind  the  shoal.  It's  a  shame ; 
and  the  Governor  ought  to  stop  it.  But  they  were  no 
good,  I'll  warrant.  There  was  one  pale-faced  chap  iu  a 
black  coat  that  looked  as  if  the  baillies  were  arter  him." 

"  Which  way  did  they  take  when  thoy  landed  ?" 
said  I. 

"  Oh  !  we  couldn't  see  which  way  they  took  from  the 

(376) 


376  Tracks  in  the  snow. 

jetty ;  but  they  told  me  tliey  went  off  in  the  direction 
of  Knopwood's  Farm ;  but  I  dont  see  what  could  take 
'en*  that  way ; '  that's  not  the  way  to  Pitt^Water. 
They're  arter  no  good,  I'm  sure,  or  else  they'd  ha'  gone 
by  the  reg'lar  ferry  what's  provided  for  people  on  pur- 
pose." 

So  saying,  by  a  shift  of  the  helm,  he  brought  the 
broad-side  of  the  boat  abreast  of  the  landing-place ;  and 
we  all  got  out  of  the  boat, — our  horses,  who  were  used 
to  the  work,  jumping  out  with  the  same  readiness  as  the 
biped.    . 

Taking  a  hint  from  the  boatman's  communication,  we 
immediately  proceeded  in  the  direction  of  Knopwood's 
Farm,  and  it  was  not  long  before  we  came  to  marks  of 
footsteps  in  the  snow.  There  were  marks  of  two  persons 
having  passed  that  morning,  the  impression  of  the  feet 
of  one  being  large  and  broad,  and  of  the  other  small  and 
narrow. 

"  These  are  our  game,"  said  one  of  the  constables ; 
"  they  have  been  in  a  hurry  to  get  over  the  ground  ;  see 
how  they  have  digged  their  toes  into  the  snow  in  their 
haste.  You  see  when  a  person  walks  slow  and  leisurely, 
he  puts  his  foot  flat  on  the  ground,  and  takes  it  up  even; 
but  when  he  runs  or  walks  quick,  he  bends  his  foot,  and 
digs  his  toe  into  the  ground,  leaving  quite  a  different 
trace  from  the  other." 

''  Well — that's  good,"  said  the  magistrate ;  "I  should 
never  have  thought  of  tliat.  Why  (to  the  constable), 
you  can  track  like  a  native  !" 

"  Better,  I  hope,  a  little,"  replied  the  constable ; 
*'  though  those  black  chaps  have  a  knack  of  tracking  in 
the  bush  quite  wonderful  to  see  at  times;  but  I  know  a 


Start  ON  TiiEi  R  Track.  377 

trick  more  tbau  they,  I  fancy.  Look  at  this;  hero's  a 
shoe  that  I  fouud  iu  the  red-house.  A  native  wouldn't 
have  thought  of  that  now.  Look  hefe ;  it  fits  exactly 
the  small  print  in  the  snow.  Now  we're  right  ou  the 
scent,  I  reckon;  but  they're  a  good  bit  ahead  of  us, 
and  we  have  no  time  to  loose,  if  we  are  to  spoil  their  fun." 

"  Now  we  are  sure  of  our  track,"  said  the  magistrate  ; 
''  I  think  you  and  I,  Thornley,  had  better  ride  on.  The 
marks  are  so  plain  that  we  cannot  miss  them ;  and  we 
will  leave  the  constables  to  follow  us." 

"  That 's  the  way,"  said  the  constable,  "  try  to  get  up 
with  them,  sir,  if  you  can;  but  I  don't  think  you'll  bo 
far  before  us,  if  I  guess  right." 

We  trotted  on  accordingly,  and  easily  tracked  the  foot- 
steps till  we  came  to  one  end  of  the  Seven-mile  Beach, 
when  the  marks  were  lost  in  the  sea.  We  tied  our  horses 
to  a  tree,  and  searched  narrowly  about,  but  we  could  not 
recover  the  trace  of  the  footsteps.  The  tide  was  still 
coming  iu,  but  it  was  nearly  high-water.  We  directed 
our  eyes  along  the  beautiful  margin  of  the  crescent- 
shaped  beach,  on  which  the  sea  was  breaking  loudly. 
The  white  foam  of  the  waves  sparkled  in  the  sun,  giving 
an  animated  appearance  to  the  scene,  that  inspired  cheer- 
fulness and  activity,  but  we  could  see  no  sign  of  living 
thing ;  but  a  low-masted  vessel  was  disappearing  in  the 
distance.  We  were  quite  at  fault,  and  we  rambled  from 
the  stony  beach  to  the  bush,  and  from  the  bush  to  the 
beach,  quite  at  a  loss  how  to  recover  the  track,  which 
seemed  lost  in  the  sea.  While  we  were  still  searching 
for  it,  the  constables  came  up  at  a  trot,  and  Sanders,  the 
one  who  had  exhibited  his  knowledge  of  tracking  in  the 
snow,  sat  down  on  the  shingles. 


378      The  Constable's  Adroitness. 

"Excuse  me,  sir,"  he  said,  ''  but  I  'm  blown  with  this 
run.  Here 's  a  beautiful  place  !  It's  remarkable  that 
'  the  sea  is  always  rough  on  this  beach ;  it  always  breaks 
more  or  less  as  you  see  it  now,  and  you  may  hear  the 
roaring  for  miles  and  miles  when  there's  a  high  wind 
setting  in-shore.  Well,  sir,  your  honour  seems  dead  beat. 
Water  leaves  no  track  1" 

"  We  have  searched  all  about  for  more  than  a  mile 
round,  and  we  can  find  nothing,"  said  the  magistrate. 
"  I  fancy  they  must  have  been  taken  off  by  a  boat,  for 
it's  plain  they  have  gone  to  the  water's  edge,  but  here  I 
lose  them." 

"Let  me  think,"  said  Sanders.  "Jim  Burke's  hut 
must  be  about  midway  between  this  and  the  other  end  of 
the  beach,  and  about  half  a  mile  inland,  behind  that  rise 
yonder  that  you  see  in  the  distance,  with  some  scrub  on 
it.  I  '11  be  bound  they  've  kept  on  the  sands,  knowing 
the  tide  was  coming  in,  and  then  cut  over  to  the  hut, 
but  we'll  soon  find  that  out." 

We  proceeded  in  a  body  along  the  margin  of  the 
shingle,  the  other  constable  searching  inland,  and  con- 
tinued our  way  without  discovering  the  track  for  three 
or  four  miles,  when  the  other  man,  who  was  a  little  in 
advance  of  us,  made  a  sign  with  his  hand. 

"  That's  the  way  to  do  it,"  said  Sanders;  "  never  shout 
out  or  make  a  noise  when  you're  after  game  in  the  bush, 
whether  it's  man  or  beast." 

"  He's  found  the  track,  I  suppose  ?"  said  I. 

"  To  be  sure  he  has,  and  so  have  we ;  look  here ;  let's 
try  my  shoe — fits  exactly  !  Now  we  have  'cm  again,  sir." 

"  Follow  us  as  fast  as  you  can,"  said  the  magistrate, 
"  we'll  push  on." 


The  Deserted  Hut.  379 

"You'll  sec  the  but  directly  you  round  the  little  hill/' 
said  Sunders;  "but  if  they  show  fight,  better  wait  till 
we  come  up.     Soft  and  easy  does  it." 

We  cantered  on  to  the  little  hill  before  us,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  we  reached  the  hut.  It  was  the  very  picture  of 
desolation.  The  sides  were  constructed  of  that  which  is 
technically  known  in  the  colony  by  the  name  of  "  wattle- 
and-dab,"  formed  of  upright  stakes,  with  twigs  interlacing 
them  hurdle  fashion,  and  rudely  plastered  with  mud. 
The  roof,  which  was  thatched  with  native  grass,  was  rough 
and  out  of  order,  and  some  planks  nailed  together  and 
fastened  to  a  cleft  log  by  hinges  of  bullock's-hide,  com- 
posed the  door.  A  curtain  of  kangaroo-skin,  much  the 
worse  for  wear,  and  looking  as  if  it  had  the  mange,  was 
pegged  over  the  opening  which  formed  the  window. 
Some  big  pebbles  from  the  beach,  with  rough  slabs  of 
the  stone  which  is  abundant  almost  everywhere  in  Van 
Diemen's  Land,  were  piled  up  with  an  intermingling  of 
'mud,  to  serve  the  purpose  of  a  chimney.  We  saw  in  a 
moment  that  it  was  empty. 

"  Poor  country  house  for  an  independent  gentleman," 
said  Sanders ;  "  but  retired — very  !  Nobody  would  think 
of  looking  for  this  rural  retreat,  unless  he  knew  where  to 
pitch  on  it.  Many  a  stolen  sheep  has  been  cut  into  mutton- 
chops  in  this  hut,  I'll  be  bound,  without  troubling  the 
butcher  to  call  at  the  i\Iarine  Villa  for  orders." 

"Don't  lose  any  time,  Sanders,"  said  the  magistrate, 
"  we  must  go  to  work  again ;  you're  a  clever  fellow,  so 
try  if  you  can  discover  anything  to  give  us  inforiiiatioQ 
of  the  parties  we  are  in  pursuit  of." 

''  Let  Scroggs  try  first,  please  sir,"  said  Sanders,  ''  and 
that  will  give  me  time  to  rest,  for  I'm  almost  knocked  up." 


380  Some  Discoveries. 

The  other  constable  made  a  rigorous  search,  but  he 
could  find  nothing  in  or  near  the  hut  but  the  remains  of 
some  scorched  sheepskins,  which  had  most  likely  been 
burnt  to  avoid  detection. 

"Now  Sanders,"  said  the  magistrate,  "try  what  you 
can  do ;  but  you  must  look  sharp,  for  the  sun  is  melting 
the  snow  fast,  and  we  shall  soon  lose  the  tracks." 

*'  Ay,  ay,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  roused  by  this  remark, 
"  I  did  not  think  of  that.  Now  let's  have  a  look  at  the 
premises." 

"Scroggs,"  said  he,  '^have  you  searched  the  thatch 
where  it  has  been  disturbed  there  ?" 

"  It's  only  the  wind,"  said  his  less  observant  coadjutor; 
"  the  wind  has  blown  the  thatch  about  all  round." 

"  Yes,"  said  Sanders,  ''  but  that's  to  leeward  of  the 
wind  j  don't  you  see,  by  the  bend  that  the  trees  have  got, 
which  way  the  wind  blo\^^s  in  these  parts  ?  That  thatch 
has  been  disturbed  latc^,  I'll  swear,  and  not  by  the  wind, 
or  I  know  nothing  of  my  trade." 

Thus  speaking,  the  acute  and  practised  constable 
mounted  on  the  shoulders  of  his  fellow,  and  thrust  his 
arm  into  the  part  of  the  thatch  which  had  excited  his 
suspicions. 

"  I  thought  so,"  said  he ;  "but  what  have  we  got  here ? 
A  tinder-box  !  No  great  find  this.  Lots  of  tinder,  with 
flint  and  steel  all  complete  !  Handy  to  get  a  light  with, 
but  no  great  use  at  present." 

"  Let  me  look  at  it,"  said  the  magistrate.  "  Turn  out 
the  tinder,  and  see  if  there  are  marks  about  the  box." 

"  No  marks  about  it,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  "  except  the 
tinman's.  Don't  let  the  wind  blow  away  the  tinder,  Sam ; 
one  never  knows  what  one  may  want  in  the  bush.     I've 


Important  Discovery.  381 

known  the  time  when  its  weight  in  gold  would  have  been 
given  for  that  bit  of  tinder  at  Oyster  Bay.     Let  me  put 

it  back  again Eh  !  what's  this  ?     Look  here,  sir, 

here's  a  name  on  the  unburnt  part  of  the  tinder  ?  The 
rag  has  been  the  upper  part  of  an  old  stocking,  and  here's 
the  name  of  'John  Shirley;'  who's  this  John  Shirley 
now,  I  should  like  to  know  ?" 

The  magistrate  took  the  tinder-box,  without  making 
any  remark,  and  drawing  me  aside,  we  conversed  for  a 
few  minutes  apart. 

"  George  Shirley  is  the  real  name  of  the  Gypsey,"  said 
the  magistrate,  "if  his  packet  speaks  truth.  It  seems 
that  we  have  lighted  on  a  near  relation  when  we  least 
expected  it." 

"  I  see  it  all,"  said  I,  a  sudden  flash  of  light  breaking 
in  upon  me ;  "  the  person  that  called  himself  John  Wol- 
sey  struck  me  that  night  as  resembling  some  one  whom 
I  had  seen  before ;  it's  the  bush-ranger.  He  gave  me  a 
look,  when  he  discovered  my  disguise,  which  reminded 
me  of  other  features  which  I  could  not  call  to  mind;  it 
was  the  look  of  the  Gypsey  bush-ranger  as  he  rolled 
over  the  precipice  at  the  Clyde.  That's  it!  I  see  it  all! 
This  is  the  brother  who  is  next  heir,  if  the  girl  was  out 
of  the  way.  Depend  upon  it,  that's  the  clue  to  all  this 
mystery." 

"  I  think  as  you  do,"  said  the  magistrate ;  "  but  there's 
a  great  deal  to  be  explained  still.  In  the  mean  time  let 
us  try  to  recover  the  poor  child,  for  if  our  surmises  are 
correct,  the  party  who  has  gone  so  far  will  not  stop  short 
in  eflFecting  his  object.  I  hope  the  poor  girl  may  not  be 
murdered  before  we  come  up  with  her.  I  don't  like  the 
appearance  of  that  schooner  that  wc  saw  in  the  distance 


382  Our  Mortification. 

when  we  came  to  the  Seven-mile-Beach.  But  we  have  no 
time  to  lose,  let  us  be  moving ;  the  men  are  rested  by  this 
time,  and  we  can  push  on." 

"There  ought  to  be  a  third  track  here,"  said  Sanders, 
''  but  I  don't  see  it.  A  child's  foot  is  light,  but  it  ought  to 
leave  its  mark  oti  the  snow.  Here  are  the  other  two,  and 
a  new  one,  as  if  making  off  in  the  direction  of  the  creek, 
where  a  boat  could  take  them  off,  but  I  don't  see  the  little 
one's.  The  large  foot  makes  a  deep  mark  in  the  snow, 
and  deeper  than  before.  How's  that  ?  I  have  it ;  the 
large  foot  has  carried  the  child,  to  conceal  the  taking  of  it. 
Thoughtful  that;  but  it's  hard  if  I  can't  match  any  one  in 
the  colony  at  this  game.  There  they  go ;  and  large-foot 
doesn't  like  his  load,  for  you  see  he  goes  stumbling  on, 
and  here  he  has  been  down  j  but  he's  up  again — and 
there  they  go;  and,  by  George,  here's  the  print  of  the 
little  one's  foot,  when  her  bearer  had  the  tumble.  They 
trod  it  out,  as  they  thought,  but  here  it  is  as  plain  as  can 
be  on  the  top  of  this  tuft  of  native  grass,  with  the  snow 
on  it,  like  the  sugar  of  a  twelfth-cake ;  Hurrah  !  my 
lads,  we  have  'em !  Three  miles  will  bring  us  to  the 
creek,  and  then  we  shall  see  what  comes  next." 

In  little  more  than  half  an  hour  we  came  to  the  edge 
of  the  creek,  which  at  high  water  is  deep  and  navigable, 
but  at  the  fall  of  the  tide  is  a  succession  of  shoals,  through 
which  it  is  difficult  to  direct  even  a  small  boat.  Tho 
searching  eye  of  Sanders  soon  espied  an  indentation 
which  had  recently  been  made  by  the  prow  of  a  boat 
striking  against  the  bank,  and  we  had  the  mortification  to 
feel  that  the  parties  of  whom  we  were  in  pursuit  had  by 
that  means  escaped  for  the  present  beyond  our  reach. 


Cjinptrr  i^jjirtti-Ziftli. 

Tho  Consultation  —  Middle-agod  Gentleman  gets  tired  of  Adven- 
tures at  last — Tlio  Track  regained — An  extempore  Dinner  and 
fresh  Oysters — A  new  Horror. 

The  diligent  constable  examined  with  great  care  all  the 
parts  about,  but  there  was  no  trace  of  footsteps.  The 
snow  was  now  disappearing  fast,  but  there  was  enough  on 
the  ground  to  show  the  mark  of  the  foot.  The  sun  shone 
brilliantly  and  warm,  and  we  stood  round  tJie  spot  for 
some  minutes  looking  into  the  water,  as  if  by  some  miracle 
we  should  see  the  track  of  the  boat.  Tho  magistrate 
was  the  first  to  break  silence. 

"  Where's  the  nearest  boat  to  be  got  ?" 

"  Nothing  to  be  had  nearer  than  Pitt  Water,"  said 
Sanders,  "  and  it's  all  a  chance  if  there's  one  there ;  but 
if  we  had  a  boat,  what  could  we  do  with  it ;  how  could 
we  tell  which  way  they  have  gone  ?" 

"  They  might  have  made  use  of  some  boat  to  cross 
over  to  the  land  on  the  other  side,"  said  the  magistrate, 
"for  the  purpose  of  baffling  our  track;  in  that  case,  the 
track  would  be  visible  on  the  other  side." 

"  To  be  sure,"  said  Sanders ;  ' '  how  was  it  that  I  didn't 

think  of  that?     If  it  was  not  for  the  shoals  and  the 

mud,  we  might  swim  it  with  one  of  the  horses;    but 

there's  no  help  for  it;  we  can't  get  on  without  a  boat 

of  some  sort." 

(383) 


384  A  Consultation. 

"Then  we  must  lose  no  time  about  it;  can  you  show 
me  the  shortest  cut  to  the  township  at  Pitt  Water  ?" 

"Let  me  alone  for  that,"  said  Sanders;  "I  should 
like  to  know  the  place  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  that  I 
couldn't  show  you  the  shortest  cut  to." 

"  Then  come  with  me,  and  perhaps  Mr.  Thornley  will 
lend  you  his  horse,  that  we  may  get  over  the  ground 
the  quicker." 

"  One  word  with  you,"  said  I,  "  before  we  go  further. 
1  don't  quite  like  this  new  adventure,"  I  added,  drawing 
the  magistrate  aside ;  "  to  tell  the  truth,  I  am  tired  of 
being  dragged  into  new  scrapes;  as  soon  as  one  ends,  an- 
other begins.  Besides,  we  are  not  prepared  for  a 
lengthened  pursuit,  and  my  head  is  not  right;  that 
knock  on  it  from  the  life-preserver  has  left  a  sensation 
which  is  anything  but  agreeable ;  and  we  are  not 
armed." 

"  You  have  your  double-barrel." 

"  But  you  have  no  arms,  and  the  constables  have  no- 
thing but  their  sticks.  Sanders,  have  you  got  any 
weapon  about  you  ?" 

Sanders  exhibited  the  huge  stick  which  served  as  his 
walking  staff." 

"I  don't  mean  that;  have  you  got  any  fire-arms?" 

"  You  don't  see  any,  do  you  ?" 

"  No ;  that's  why  we  ask." 

"Do  you  think,"  said  Sanders,  "that  an  old  hand 
would  ever  engage  in  anything  that  looks  like  business 
■without  his  tools  ?"  and  opening  his  waistcoat,  he  dis- 
closed two  small  pistols  in  a  concealed  pocket  on  each 
Bide  of  his  waistcoat. 

"  And  your  mate  ?" 


I  GET  Tired   of  such  Adventures.  385 

"  He  has  nothing  but  his  staff.  But  Lord  bless  you, 
sir  I  it  seldom  comes  to  that.  I  carry  mine  for  caution's 
sake,  but  it's  seldom  necessary  to  show  'em,  even.  You 
see,  when  a  man's  pounced  upon  by  a  constable,  he's 
cowed  like,  because  he  thinks  that  an  officer  has  a  right 
to  take  him,  and  his  mind  is  used  to  feel  that  he  can't 
resist  an  officer;  it's  a  habit  like  that  loose  characters 
get.  So  while  he  is  nonplused,  we  just  take  him  gently, 
and  clap  the  darbies  on  him,  and  then  we  have  him  like 
bricks." 

"That's  all  very  well,"  I  continued,  walking  a  few 
steps  aside,  "  but  really  I  don't  see  that  I  am  called  on 
to  expose  my  life  in  this  matter.  Had  we  not  better  let 
the  police  magistrate  take  it  up  ?  He  is  clever,  and 
used  to  these  things.  Besides,  I  don't  see  the  necessity 
of  taking  the  matter  into  our  own  hands ;  it  is  an  affair 
for  the  authorities  to  interfere  in ;  for  if  the  girl  is  the 
daughter  of  the  Yorkshire  George  Shirley,  and  the  Gyp- 
sey's  tale  is  true,  she  is  an  important  personage,  and  it's 
a  matter  for  the  government  to  take  up." 

''  All  very  true,  my  dear  fellow,"  said  my  friend, 
"but  it's  the  time.  While  we  are  going  back,  and  going 
about  the  business  formally,  these  rascals  may  convey 
the  girl  away,  or,  God  knows  I  murder  her,  perhaps." 

"I  rather  think,"  said  I,  "they  have  some  motive 
for  not  killing  her,  or  they  would  have  done  it  before, 
and  not  have  encumbered  themselves  with  her  in  this 
chase ;  to  marry  her,  maybe,  to  some  one.  But  we  have 
no  time  to  indulge  in  surmises  on  that  point,  nor  would 
it  De  of  any  use  to  us  to  resolve  it  at  this  moment. 
The  matter  in  hand  is  to  consider  the  propriety  of  our 
taking  on  ourselves  the  finding  of  the  girl." 
25 


iiSO     Magistrate  makes  a  Discovery. 

"As  to  that,"  said  the  magistrate,  ''my  mind  is  made 
up;  I  can  act  in  any  part  of  the  colony,  my  commission 
being  made  out  for  the  whole  of  the  island,  though  for 
convenience  sake,  we  are  all  appointed  to  particular  dis- 
tricts, and  we  are  expected,  of  course,  not  to  meddle 
with  matters  beyond  them  unnecessarily.  But  I  con- 
sider this  a  case  of  necessity,  and  a  pressing  one,  and  I 
think  it  my  duty  not  to  neglect  it.  I  must  in  fairness 
allow  that  I  like  these  excitements,  but  I  am  differently 
circumstanced  to  you,  who  have  a  family.  But  wait 
here,  at  all  events,  till  we  return  to  relieve  you ;  this 
spot  ought  not  to  be  left  unwatched ;  and  indeed,  I  want 
your  horse,  if  you  have  no  objection,  to  mount  the  con- 
stable as  a  guide,  as  he  is  the  only  one  among  us  who 
knows  the  road." 

"  Well,"  said  I,  "  if  it  must  be  so,  it  must;  but  I  must 
say  frankly,  I  am  tired  of  these  expeditions.  I'm  wanted 
at  home,  and  I've  had  enough  of  them." 

"I  see,"  said  my  friend,  "  you  are  not  romantic." 

"  Not  I !  I'm  a  plain  Surrey  farmer  turned  into  a 
settler,  and  as  to  your  romance,  I  leave  that  to  young 
fellows  like  you.  I  would  rather  have  half  a  dozen  mut- 
ton-chops just  now  than  any  dish  of  romance  that  you 
could  cook  up  for  me."  And  so  saying,  I  sat  myself 
down  by  the  side  of  the  water,  with  the  other  constable 
for  my  companion,  and  the  magistrate  and  Sanders  can- 
tered off  in  the  direction  of  Sorrell-Town,  the  nascent  me- 
tropolis of  Pitt-Water. 

I  was  almost  tired  out,  when  a  shout  from  the  opposite 
side  of  the  inlet  attracted  our  attention,  and  I  sprung  to 
my  feet.  I  saw  the  magistrate  on  hors-cback,  standing 
on  the  high  bank.     He  took  off  his  hat  and  waved  it, 


The  Boatman's  Information.     as7 

from  which  I  concluded  that  he  had  some  good  news  for 
us  ;  but  I  could  not  tell  what,  for  it  was  too  far  for  his 
voice  to  reach  us.  My  companion  thought  he  could  dis- 
tinguish the  word  ''boat/'  but  to  me  it  seemed  only  the 
usual  "  cooee,"  the  colonial  way  of  throwing  the  voice 
to  a  distance.  But  my  companion  was  right,  for  pre- 
sently afterwards  we  discovered  a  boat  making  its  way 
to  us  thr4)ugh  the  intricate  passages  of  the  inlet,  for  it 
was  now  almost  low  water,  and  the  numerous  shoals 
made  the  navigation  very  difficult.  As  it  was,  we  had 
to  plunge  into  the  mud  before  we  could  get  into  the  boat, 
and  we  were  obliged  to  make  a  long  round  before  wc 
could  reach  the  shore.  While  we  were  making  the  pas- 
sage, I  asked  the  man  in  the  boat,  for  there  was  only  one, 
what  the  news  was. 

*'No  new.s,"  said  he,  "except  that  I  hear  you  are  in 
pursuit  of  two  men  and  a  girl  who  passed  over  here  in  the 
morning.  I  was  down  here  looking  after  some  fish,  when 
I  saw  them  just  about  where  I  took  you  up,  and  they  said 
they  wanted  to  cross  over,  and  they  offered  me,  that  is, 
the  gentleman  did,  a  couple  of  dollars,  if  I  would  put 
them  over.  I  thought  it  odd  to  see  the  girl  with  them, 
but  it  was  no  business  of  mine." 

"  What  sort  of  a  girl  was  she  ?"  I  asked  eagerly,  for 
this  was  the  first  person  I  had  met  who  hud  seen  my 
troublesome  charge. 

"Oh  !  just  like  other  girls,  but  I  did'nt  see  her  face; 
but  she  seemed  very  tired  and  sick,  poor  thing !  One  of 
the  men  carried  her  in  his  arms,  and  I  think  she  had 
been  crying  a  good  deal;  but  she  didn't  cry  in  the  boat; 
she  seemed  afraid  of  the  man  in  the  black  coat.  Sho 
can't  be  more  than  six  or  seven  years  old,  I  take  it;  and 


388  Land  Sharks. 

what  their  game  is  I  don't  understand.     However,  it's 
no  business  of  mine." 

"  Much  fish  hereabouts  ?"  said  I. 

"Fish!  bless  you,  the  waters  hereabouts  are  as  full 
of  fish  as  they  can  cram ;  but  they  are  poor  things  for 
eating,  most  of  them.  As  you  get  farther  up  the  inlet, 
the  creeks  and  little  ponds  that  the  tide  leaves  are  full 
of  fish  J  and  the  ground-sharks  are  as  thick  as  they  can 
swim." 

"  Grround-sharks  !  that's  unpleasant.  How  big  are 
they?" 

''Not  big  enough  to  do  much  mischief;  they're  most 
of  them  as  big  as  a  large  codfish — some  bigger — weigh- 
ing a  matter  of  ten,  or  fifteen,  or  twenty  pounds.  The 
natives  eat  'em,  but  they're  rank  things  to  my  taste." 

"  How  do  the  natives  catch  them  ?" 

"They  don't  catch  them  at  all;  they  spear  'em  with 
their  long  thin  spears ;  and  then  they  put  them  over  the 
fire  a  bit,  and  eat  'em  half  raw ;  but  they  don't  seem  to 
like  'em  much.  It's  only  when  they  can't  get  other  food. 
And  now,  masters,  this  is  as  near  as  I  can  bring  you ; 
the  mud  is  awkward,  but  it  isn't  above  leg-deep,  and  the 
bottom  is  hard  enough  when  you  get  there.  But  if 
you  are  good  climbers,  I  can  run  you  right  against  the 
cliff  yonder,  and  so  you  may  get  on  the  shore  dry- 
footed." 

Receiving  my  assent  to  this  latter  proposition,  he  ran 
his  boat  to  the  bank  accordingly,  and  with  a  good  deal 
of  difficulty  I  and  the  constable  scrambled  to  the  top. 
Wo  found  the  magistrate  and  Sanders  waiting  to  receive 
us,  with  another  man  on  horse-back,  and  on  the  grnund 
was  a  huge  basket  which  they  had  brought  with  them. 


The  Track  Rk gained.  389 

A  bush-fire  of  dead  wood  which  they  had  kindled  was 
burning  briskly. 

The  snow  had  almost  disappeared,  but  there  was  still 
Bufficient  for  a  keen  eye  accustomed  to  the  bush  to  dis- 
tinguish the  sunken  traces  of  the  party  wc  were  in 
pursuit  of. 

"  You  see,"  said  the  magistrate,  pointing  to  the  almost 
obliterated  footsteps,  "we  are  on  the  scent,  but  they 
have  got  the  start  of  us,  and  the  snow  is  nearly  melted, 
for  it  don't  remain  long  on  the  ground  in  this  country." 

"  Upon  my  word,"  said  I,  ''  I  think  I  must  decline 
going  any  further.  I  am  so  weak  and  faint,  that  really 
I  am  not  fit  for  a  bush  excursion ;  and  I  must  confess 
I  am  so  vulgar  as  to  want  something  to  eat." 

"We  have  thought  of  that,"  said  Sanders,  "there's 
the  prog ;  we  wouldn't  break  into  it,  but  waited  till  you 
could  join  us." 

"  Now,  my  lad,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  produce  your 
provisions." 

The  stranger,  who  had  the  appearance  of  a  respectable 
servant,  immediately  spread  on  the  log  of  the  tree  on 
which  we  were  sitting  a  white  table-cloth ;  and  arranged 
plates,  and  knives,  and  forks. 

"  I  wish  I  could  get  a  drink  of  something,"  said  I, 
"  but  I  suppose  there's  no  water  hereabouts  but  what's 
brackish." 

"Water!  who  thinks  of  water?"  said  the  magistrate, 
gaily;  "here's  a  bottle  of  Barclay's  own  stout.  Who 
has  got  a  corkscrew  ?  Here's  a  job  !  no  corkscrew  !  It's 
strange  how  people  will  go  about  without  a  corkscrew,  the 
the  only  thing  that  is  ever  useful,  and  never  to  be  had 
when  wanted.     Oh,  you  have  got  one,  my  lad,  that's 


890  A  Good  Dinner. 

very  clever  of  yon.  Here,  Thornley,  drink.  There's 
nothinf^  like  porter  in  the  bush,  only  it's  not  to  be  had 
everywhere.     You  see,  I  did  not  forget  you." 

''What  have  you  got  to  eat?"  said  I,  considerably 
refreshed  with  my  draught ;  "  I  had  but  a  scanty  break- 
fast." 

"  Then  you  shall  make  the  better  dinner.  Bring  him 
out,  my  lad  !  There's  a  splendid  fellow  !  A  goose  is 
better  hot,  perhaps,  but  I  think  we  can  manage  him  as 
he  is ; — allow  me,"  helping  me  to  a  leg  and  a  wing,  and 
alloting  the  same  portion  to  himself; — ''and  as  to  our 
friends  the  constables,  they  may  solace  themselves  with 
that  cold  shoulder  of  mutton." 

"  I'll  have  a  dig  at  the  mutton  in  a  minute,"  said 
Sanders;  "but  I  shall  treat  myself  to  a  few  oysters 
first." 

"Oysters!  Is  the  man  distraught  with  fasting? 
You're  not  near  Billingsgate-market,  friend.  What  puts 
oysters  into  your  head  ?" 

"  I'll  put  the  oysters  somewhere  else  in  five  minutes," 
said  the  constable;  "you  don't  know  whereabouts  you 
are ; — this  little  bay  is  full  of  oysters,  as  I'll  soon  show  you. 
Scroggs,  my  boy,"  said  he  to  his  mate,  "  will  you  have 
some  natives  ?" 

"  I  don't  mind  if  I  do,"  said  the  accommodat- 
ing Scroggs;  "a  few  dozens  of  oysters  sharpen  the  ap- 
petite." 

Without  more  ado,  the  tv/o  constables  took  ofi"  their 
shoes  and  stockings,  and  stripping  their  trousers  high 
up  their  legs,  they  borrowed  a  large  cloth  from  the  lad 
with  the  basket,  and  waded  into  the  water  thirty  or 
forty    yards.      Reaching  down   their  arms,   they   soon 


Gooss  AND   Oysters.  391 

filled  the  cloth  with  oysters,  and  brought  them  to  us, 
rattling  them  down  in  a  great  heap,  and  went  back  to 
the  water  for  a  fresh  supply. 

"Here,  my  lad,"  said  my  friend,  "chuck  some  armsful 
of  these  into  the  fire  to  roast,  while  we  pass  away  the 
time  with  the  others.  Who's  got  an  oyster  knife?  That's 
another  thing  tliat  people  never  think  of  carrying  about 
with  them,  though  they  never  know  when  it  may  be 
wanted,  as  you  see.  Oh !  you've  got  a  knife ;  handy 
knife  this.  There,  lad,  hook  out  the  oysters  directly 
you  hear  them  crack,  or  they'll  burn.  No  bad  fare,  my 
friend,  for  the  bush — cold  goose  and  oyster  sauce.  I  say, 
this  knife  puts  odd  ideas  into  my  head.  Suppose  this 
most  respectable  gentleman,  John  Shirley,  Esq.,  was  to 
use  the  same  sort  of  tool  on  the  poor  little  girl — eh  ? 
There,  don't  lay  down  your  knife  and  fork  —  I  only 
hinted  it.  Take  some  more  goose,  a  leg  and  a  wing  are 
nothing  for  a  hungry  man.  Don't  spare  the  oj^'Sters, 
plenty  more  where  those  came  from.  I'll  join  you  in 
another  glass  of  stout." 

"  With  all  my  heart,"  said  I,  feeling  better  and  stronger 
for  my  meal ;  "  and,  after  all,  it  would  be  a  pity  not  to 
make  an  effort  to  recover  the  poor  girl.  I  shall  never 
forget  the  agony  of  the  Gypsey  when  he  talked  of  her 
before  he  was  dashed  to  pieces  over  that  horrible  pre- 
cipice." 

"  Come,  you  feel  in  better  heart  now,  and  all  ready  for 
another  start,  eh  ?  We  must  make  our  men  despatch  and 
get  ready  for  our  march  j  we  have  brought  a  couple  of 
muskets  with  us,  and  lots  of  cartridges ;  and  you  see  my 
Sorroll-Town  acquaintance  has  lent  me  this  fowling-piece, 
shot-bolt,  and  powder-horn,  all  complete.     I  found  a  party 


S92  A  New  Horror. 

just  sitting  down  to  dinner  witli  mvilice  prepense  against 
this  late  goose — peace  to  his  remains  !  But  I  soon  ex- 
plained matters  to  them,  and  they  despatched  this  lad  on 
horseback  with  the  provender.  The  lady  of  the  house  was 
so  interested  about  your  young  heroine,  that  a  little  per- 
suasion, I  think,  would  have  induced  her  to  join  us  in  the 
pursuit.  Come  Sanders,"  he  continued,  raising  his  voice, 
"another  batch  of  oysters!  Why,  man,  you'll  grow 
shelly  if  you  take  in  so  many  of  those  testaceous  deli- 
cacies !  Holloa  ! — what's  the  matter  with  the  men  ?  They 
have  thrown  down  their  load  on  the  beach,  and  are  stand- 
ing aghast  at  something.     Look,  Thornley." 

I  turned  my  head,  and  beheld  the  two  constables 
anxiously  and  fearfully  examining  something  that  they 
saw  on  the  beach.  We  hastened  to  the  spot ;  and  San- 
ders, pointing  to  the  spot  that  had  attracted  his  attention, 
said,  to  our  dismay,  in  a  more  feeling  tone  than  I  had 
given  him  credit  for  : — 

"  I  fear  they  have  done  for  the  poor  child,  sir ; — this 
is  sadly  suspicious." 

We  looked, — and  in  the  shade  near  the  base  of  the 
overhanging  cliff,  we  saw  the  marks  of  tramping  feet, 
and  the  white  snow  was  crimsoned  with  large  drops  of 
blood. 

The  sight  of  the  blood  filled  us  all  with  the  most 
anxious  apprehensions  •  and  even  the  phlegmatic  Scroggs 
was  moved  at  what  appeared  to  denote  the  sad  catastrophe 
of  the  little  girl's  murder. 

"  I've  knocked  many  a  bullock  on  the  head,"  said  he, 
''  and  cut  many  a  sheep's  throat,  and  never  cared  for  the 
sight  of  the  blood — it  was  natural,  and  it's  what  animals 
are  used  to ;  but me  !  if  I  ever  felt  like  this  before, 


Alive  or  Dead?  393 

— it's  enough  to  turn  one  sick — after  eating  oysters,  too ! 
I  couldn't  have  cut  the  throat  of  that  little  girl,  now — 
though  I've  never  seen  her, — but  a  child 's  a  child, — no, 
not  for  a  hundred  dollars — no,  nor  a  thousand  neither. 
Poor  little  thing !  how  she  must  have  scriggledl" 


Clin|ittr  €l)irtt|-|iitl;. 

Who  is  the  Murderer  and  the  Victim? — A  Settler's  Fare — An  Ex- 
cuse for  a  Glass  of  Grog — Kangaroos  in  Miniature — The  Chase. 

''The  blood  looks  bad,"  said  the  magistrate,  after  a 
pause,  "  but  that  might  happen  a  thousand  ways.  It's 
the  trampling  of  the  earth  round  about  that  looks  most 
suspicious.  See !  here  has  been  a  tuft  of  rushes  pulled 
up  in  the  struggle.  These  rushes  are  thick  and  strong — 
too  strong  for  a  child  to  pull  up,  I  think,  even  in  a  death- 
struggle.  No,  this  was  not  done  by  a  child's  hand  !  Let 
us  make  a  closer  examination." 

Pursuing  our  investigation,  we  found  the  mark  of  the 
heel  of  a  man's  shoo,  which  had  been  digged  violently 
into  the  ground,  apparently  in  a  struggle  to  rise,  and 
beyond  the  circle  where  our  own  footsteps  had  trodden 
down  the  snow,  and  which  for  a  moment  had  prevented 
our  observing  the  space  beyond  it,  we  traced  the  ap- 
pearance of  some  heavy  body  having  been  dragged  for 
some  distance  to  a  spot  where  there  was  a  deep  hole,  at 
the  foot  of  some  straggling  rocks.  By  throwing  in  peb- 
bles, we  ascertained  that  the  hole  was  of  considerable 
depth.  In  looking  about,  the  intelligent  constable  ob- 
served the  mark  of  a  sfotie  of  a  large  size  having  been 
removed,  the  earth  in  which  it  had  been  imbedded  ex- 
hibiting a  surface  which,  from  its  freshness,  it  was  plain 
(394) 


My   Sympathies  Excited.      395 

had  been  but  recently  exposed  to  the  air ;  and  at  short 
distances  two  more  indications  of  the  same  sort  were  dis- 
covered. 

'^  That  pool  holds  the  dead  body  of  somebody,  I'll  be 
sworn/'  said  Sanders;  "but  that's  a  secret  that  lies  at 
the  bottom,  and  I  don't  see  the  way  to  get  at  it  just  now ; 
but  time  will  show,  for  there  never  was  a  murder  ever  so 
secret  that  was  not  found  out  at  last." 

After  a  diligent  search,  we  could  find  nO  other  marks 
of  blood  than  those  which  had  first  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  the  constables ;  but  it  was  clear  that  a  desperate 
struggle  had  taken  place  on  the  spot,  but  who  was  the 
victim,  or  whether  there  was  more  than  one,  was  involved 
in  mystery. 

]iy  this  time,  having  recovered  from  the  efiects  of  my 
prcAnous  night's  suffering,  I  began  to  warm  to  the  work; 
and  being  moved  at  the  sight  of  the  blood,  and  the 
thought  of  the  peril  that  the  poor  girl  was  in,  if  she  was 
still  alive,  I  was  eager  to  continue  the  pursuit.  I  pro- 
posed, therefore,  that  we  should  not  lose  time  in  discus- 
sing the  probabilities  of  what  had  taken  place,  but  mark 
the  exact  spot,  so  as  to  be  able  to  find  it  again  without 
difficulty,  and  move  forward  without  delay  to  the  rescue 
of  the  child,  whose  precarious  fate  had  inspired  me  with 
an  interest  which  I  was  surprised  at  myself; — but  I 
thought  of  my  own  children,  and  could  not  but  feel 
strongly  for  an  orphan  who  had  been  cast  on  my  care 
under  circumstances  so  remarkable,  and  against  whose 
life  or  welfare  it  was  evident  there  was  some  nefarious 
design. 

We  sent  back  our  Sorell-Town  purveyor  liberally  re- 
compensed, and  started  off  on  the  track,  now  become 


396        The  Pursuit  Continued. 

very  faint,  at  a  rapid  pace,  Sanders  taking  the  lead.  It 
was  now  drawing  towards  the  evening,  and  the  sun  was 
sinking  fast,  aflfording  to  us  the  not  very  agreeable  pros- 
pect of  passing  the  night  in  the  bush  under  a  winter'$ 
sky,  with  the  likelihood  of  a  heavy  fall  of  snow  for 
feather  beds.  We  were  glad,  therefore,  when  we  found 
that  our  course  led  us  in  the  direction  of  the  Coal-River, 
where  we  knew  there  were  many  settlers,  some  of  them 
indeed  verging  towards  the  position  of  wealthy  agricul- 
turists. We  skirted  a  succession  of  small  farms,  looking 
very  cold  and  desolate  at  the  decline  of  the  day  in  the 
winter  season,  till  we  came  to  where  a  log  fence  had  been 
broken  dovm ;  we  followed  on,  and  presently  came  into 
view  of  the  red-brick  house  of  some  thriving  settler  in  a 
hollow  beneath  the  hill.  The  marks  of  the  footsteps  in 
the  snow  became  more  and  more  indistinct,  but  after 
passing  the  centre  of  the  enclosure,  we  observed  the 
j)rints  of  the  shoes  of  a  horse. 

"  This  looks  like  business,"  said  Sanders.  ''  You  see, 
sir,  these  chaps  are  determined  to  go  through  with  their 
work.  They  have  taken  some  poor  devil  of  a  settler's 
horse,  and  depend  upon  it,  sir,  they  have  made  up  their 
minds  for  a  run." 

"I  have  no  doubt,"  said  the  magistrate,  "that  their 
object  is  to  get  away  from  the  island;  and  having  been 
stopped  at  IIobart-Town,  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  they  were 
to  make  an  attempt  at  Launceston." 

"  That  would  be  leading  us  a  pretty  dance,"  said  T. 
"It's  a  chase  of  a  hundred  and  twenty  miles  at  least; 
but  we  must  hope  to  come  up  with  them  before  then.  If 
they  keep  their  horse,  they  will  leave  a  good  track  behind 
them ;  we  must  take  care  not  to  lose  it.     It  would  bo 


A  S  E  T  T  L  t:  R  '  S  II  U  T  .  307 

■wo]],"  I  added,  ''to  measure  the  size  and  shape  of  the 
horse's  shoes  ^\-hile  we  have  light  enough." 

Sanders  took  the  hint,  and  found  that  the  horse  had  a 
broad  shoe  on  tlie  left  fore-foot  and  a  narrow-shaped  one 
on  the  other.  He  took  down  the  exact  size  of  each  shoe, 
and  noted  them  with  a  pencil  in  a  pocket-book. 

Some  flakes  of  snow  now  began  to  fall,  and  the  dusk 
came  on,  warning  us  that  if  we  thought  of  seeking  a  shel- 
ter for  the  night,  it  was  time  to  look  about  us;  but  we 
kept  on  our  way  as  long  as  we  could  distinguish  the 
track,  but  the  snow  falling  faster  and  faster,  ajid  dark- 
ness coming  on  beside,  we  made  a  halt,  and  deliberated 
on  what  was  best  to  be  done. 

"With  submission  to  you,  sir,"  said  Sanders  to  the 
magistrate,  "it's  of  no  use  to  follow  a  track  at  night; 
there's  more  lost  than  gained  by  it;  for  the  fatigue 
makes  one  the  less  able  to  do  the  work  next  day.  You 
see,  we  have  'em  safe  if  this  snow  continues,  which 
looks  likely,  for  they  cannot  rub  out  their  marks,  and 
they  must  go  between  the  river  and  the  tier  of  hills;  so 
that,  by  crossing  the  line  between,  we  shall  come  on 
khcir  track  again.  If  I  might  venture  to  advise,  sir, 
fou  will  be  all  the  better  to-morrow  for  a  night's  rest, 
»ud  if  we  could  borrow  a  couple  of  horses  hereabouts,  it 
would  be  all  the  better,  and  we  could  make  more  speed 
in  the  morning." 

We  thought  the  experienced  constable's  advice  good, 
and  under  his  guidance  we  turned  aside  to  the  left,  and 
after  half  an  hour's  march  we  came  to  the  door  of  a  set^- 
tler's  hut,  where  we  asked  permission  to  pass  the  night. 
It  proved  to  be  the  dwelling  of  a  man  for  whom  the 
magistrate  had  procured  a  ticket  of  leave  about  two 


398  A  Settler's   Fare. 

years  before,  for  good  conduct,  and  who  had  since  rented 
a  farm  of  three  hundred  acres,  of  which  there  were 
about  fifteen  under  tillage,  with  the  working-bullocks 
and  farming  conveniences  usually  let  with  the  land  on 
such  occasions.  This  was  a  lucky  hit.  Our  first  busi- 
ness was  to  make  inquiries  after  the  parties  we  were  in 
pursuit  of,  but  our  new  acquaintances  could  give  us  no 
information. 

We  were  made  welcome  with  all  the  means  which  the 
humble  dwelling  afibrded,  and  the  united  efforts  of  the 
farmer  and  his  wife  were  cheerfully  rendered  to  furnish 
out  our  entertainment.  Fresh  logs  were  thrown  on  the 
fire,  and  some  very  lean  mutton-chops,  cut  from  a  lan- 
tern-looking sheep,  which  was  suspended  from  the  branch 
of  a  tree  outside,  were  immediately  put  into  the  frying- 
pan  by  the  man,  while  the  woman  busied  herself  with 
the  tea-things  J  mutton-chops  for  eating,  and  tea  for 
beverage,  being  the  usual  repast  on  almost  all  occasions 
in  the  houses  of  the  poorer  class  of  settlers. 

While  these  preparations  were  being  made  inside,  we 
looked  to  our  horses  out  of  doors.  There  was  but  poor 
accommodation  for  them,  but  a  sort  of  shed  protected 
them  from  the  snow,  and  they  were  obliged  to  put  up  with 
a  bran  mash  for  supper,  and  a  tolerable  feed  of  barley. 
Hay  and  oats  were  for  the  most  part  unattainable  luxu- 
ries in  Van  Diemen's  Land  at  that  time,  and  not  often 
to  be  obtained  now;  barley  and  wheat,  or  barley  in  the 
straw,  being  their  customary  food,  with  the  grass  of  the 
country  as  it  grows  in  its  natural  state.  We  were 
quickly  summoned  by  our  host  to  the  repast  prepared 
for  us. 

'' Hal  her  poor  mutton   for  you,  sir,"  said  the  man  j 


An   Excuse  for   Grog.  309 

''  we  Lave  but  a  poor  run  here  for  sheep,  and  it's  not 
easy  to  get  them  through  the  winter  with  anything  on 
their  bones,  but  you  shall  have  our  best." 

"Why,  you're  getting  on,  Kichard,"  said  the  magis- 
trate, "  if  you  have  got  a  flock  of  sheep.  How  many 
have  you  ?" 

"  There's  near  three  hundred  of  'em ;  but  they  are 
not  my  own  j  I  wish  they  were.  I  have  'em  on  the 
thirds;  they  were  part  of  the  farming  stock,  and  thanks 
to  you,  sir,  the  owner  has  trusted  me  with  them,  with 
the  rest  of  the  farming  things." 

"  Can  you  manage  a  cow  ?" 

"  Not  yet,  sir ;  we  have  four  working-bullocks,  pretty 
good  ones;  but  we  can't  manage  a  cow  yet.  This 
is  no  place  for  stock.  If  we  could  contrive  half  a  dozen 
cows,  we  could  make  our  money  of  them,  for  wife's  a 
good  dairy-woman,  and  we  are  within  reach  of  Camp, 
where  we  could  get  half-a-crown  a  pound  in  money  for 
every  pound  we  could  make.  But  won't  you  eat,  sir  ? 
the  things  are  clean,  though  they're  homely.  Will  you 
drink  tea  with  your  meat  ?" 

"  Have  you  nothing  but  tea,  Dick,  for  the  gentlemen," 
said  Sanders,  making  a  wry  face,  which  was  reflected  by 
Scroggs,  "  in  these  parts  ?  There  used  to  be  better  stufl" 
to  be  had  not  long  ago." 

Dick  pointed  with  his  hand  to  the  magistrate,  and 
shook  his  head. 

I  understood  the  meaning  of  these  masonic  signs  very 
well ;  so  as  I  wished  to  please  the  constables,  whom  it 
was  important  for  us  to  keep  in  good  humour,  without 
compromising  my  friend's  oflicial  tligiiity,  I  displayed 
two  flvc  dollar  notes  to  Sanders,  who  thereupon  gave  a 
significant  nod,  and  disappeared  with  Scroggs." 


400  The  Magistrate  Winks  at  It. 

"  Good  water,  hereabouts  ?"  said  the  magistrate. 

'♦  There's  not  much  water  for  stock  till  you  get  to  the 
river,  but  there's  a  spring  handy  by,  that  serves  for  our 
own  use." 

"  It  doesn't  taste  well  out  of  a  pannikin.  Bah  !  it's 
like  a  mineral  spring.  You  haven't  got  a  glass  tumbler, 
Richard  ?" 

"We  had  one,  sir,  but  it's  broke,  and  we  can't  be 
very  nice  at  first;  but  there's  a  teacup  if  you  like  it 
better.  It's  done  enough  now,"  said  he  to  his  wife,  who 
had  been  frying  a  cake  in  the  pan,  and  her  own  face  at 
the  same  time,  while  we  were  discussing  our  dish  of 
mutton-chops  and  damper.  "There's  a  real  settler's 
cake  for  you,  gentlemen,  made  nice  and  light,  like  a 
pancake,  only  it  wants  eggs  and  milk." 

"  A  glass  of  grog,  now,  would  be  no  bad  thing,"  said 
my  friend;  "but  I  suppose  that's  not  easy  to  be  got 
here.  How  far  are  we  from  any  public  house  ?  Hum 
is  better  than  nothing,  at  a  pinch,  though  it's  sad  stuff 
generally — new  and  rank — the  common  rum  from  Ben- 
gal, one  of  the  most  unwholesome  of  all  spirits;  but  as 
a  medicine,  now  and  then " 

The  worthy  magistrate's  dissertation  on  the  qualities 
of  Bengal  rum  was  cut  short  by  Sanders,  who  appeai'ed 
with  a  bottle  of  that  popular  liquor,  the  same  having 
been  only  half-watered,  in  deference  to  the  distinguished 
company,  for  whose  especial  refection  Sanders  had  en- 
joined the  sly-shop,  it  was  on  this  occasion  particularly 
dedicated. 

"  Where  does  this  come  from  ?"  asked  the  magistrate, 
in  a  little  absence  of  mind,  and  pouring  into  the  panni- 
kin a  decent  portion  of  the  liquid. 


Liquor  Disappears,  401 

"  Out  of  the  bottle,"  said  I. 

"I  take  it  as  a  medicine,"  rejoined  my  friend,  taking 
the  hint  at  the  same  time — ''  only  as  a  medicine  (San- 
ders and  Scroggs  shook  their  heads  doubtfully) ;  for, 
after  all,  it  only  spoils  the  water — but  this  water  is 
brackish." 

AVith  this  my  excellent  friend  imbibed,  with  consider- 
able relish,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  a  tolerable  dose  of  the 
medicine,  and  knocking  the  table  with  the  edge  of  the 
tin  pannikin,  which  made  a  ringing  sound,  as  if  com- 
plaining of  being  empty,  he  laid  his  hand  promiscuous- 
like  on  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  and  tilting  it  over,  directed 
its  muzzle,  in  a  sort  of  fit  of  abstraction,  towards  the 
capacious  mouth  of  the  pannikin. 

"Any  sugar,  Richard?" 

"Only  brown,  sir;  we  never  have  anything  but  brown; 
white  is  too  expensive  for  new  settlers." 

"True,  Richard,  true; — this  is  brown  sugar,  but  it 
tempers  the  spirit.  I  think  I'll  try  it  this  time  with  hot 
water.  Bale  out  a  little  from  the  tripod  with  the  other 
pannikin.  In  cold  weather,  it's  well  to  keep  up  the 
▼ital  heat,  Dick." 

My  friend  sipped  his  boiling  grog  with  a  philosophic 
cheerfulness,  and  a  readiness  in  accommodating  himself 
to  circumstances  extremely  gratifying  to  an  intelligent 
mind,  and  when  he  had  got  half  through  his  second 
pannikin,  he  condescended,  with  much  complacency,  to 
observe,  that  "  after  all,  it  was  a  tipple  not  to  be  despised, 
if  taken  now  and  then,  and  in  moderation  !" 

Sanders  and  Scroggs,  however,  did  not  view  the  alarm- 
ing deficit,  which  was  increasing,  in  the  solitary  bottle, 
with  the  same  composure,  their  minds,  I  presume,  not 
20 


402  Australian  Boomahs. 

being  so  philosophically  constituted  ;  and  it  was  with  the 
most  lively  apprehensions,  therefore,  that  they  saw  the 
magistrate  raise  his  hand  for  the  third  time  in  a  threat- 
ening way  to  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  which  stood  handy 
to  his  reach.  The  intellects  of  the  latter  functionary 
being  sharpened  by  the  pressing  nature  of  the  danger, 
he  forgot,  in  his  agony,  the  deep  respect  due  to  the  offi- 
cial dignity  of  his  worship,  and  being  unable  to  repress 
his  feelings,  he  vociferated  a  tremendous  ''Oh  !" 

"What's  the  matter?"  said  the  magistrate;  ''have 
you  done  your  supper  ?  You  had  better  have  a  glass 
of  grog.  Here,  Sanders,  take  the  bottle.  And  now 
for  a  turn  in.     Richard,  how  can  you  manage  for  us  ?" 

"  If  it  wasn't  for  my  wife,  sir,  you  should  have  our 
little  room,  but  we'll  make  you  up  a  shake-down  in 
this  corner  by  the  fire,  and  you'll  lie  soft  enough  on  the 
wool." 

"Wool!  No  boomahs!  I  hope— eh !  Dick?"  begin- 
ning to  scratch  himself  instinctively  at  the  sight  of  the 
wool. 

"Pretty  well  for  that,  sir,  but  they  will  come  where- 
ever  there's  a  house.  It's  the  dogs,  I  suppose,  that  har- 
bour them ;  but  they  don't  meddle  with  us  much ;  or 
else  we  are  used  to  them." 

"  Used  to  them  !  Bless  ye  !"  said  Sanders,  "all  the 
settlers'  houses  in  this  district  are  full  of  'em;  they're 
Migenous  to  the  place.  You  may  see  'em  in  summer 
time  going  down  to  the  Coal-River  to  water  quite  regu- 
lar, and  hopping  back  again,  like  Christians.  Lively 
little  creturs  they  are,  and  love  company.  They're  a 
sort  of  kangaroo  in  minature ;  and  I  dare  say  if  you 
took  the  trouble  to  examine  'cm,  you  would  find  'em 


Liveliness  of  the  B  o  o  m  a  n  s  .      403 

with  tails  and  false  bellies,  all  complete.  There's  one  : 
and  there's  another  !  he's  a  regular  boomah  !  Ah  !  my 
fine  fellow !  I  can  see  you  are  grinning  at  me,  and  ex- 
pecting an  elegant  supper  on  my  unfortunate  person, 
but  (here  we  heard  a  peculiar  sort  of  crack)  I'll  disap- 
point you,  you  blackguard !  And  you  too  (another 
cracks,  and — confound  them  !  here's  a  regular  colony  ! 
Well,  bite  away,  my  hearties,  it's  of  no  use  trying  to 
get  rid  of  you,  I  see !  What  must  be,  must !  I'm  a 
doomed  victim !" 

The  night  passed  away  in  similar  complaints  from  the 
whole  party,  each  individual  waging  unsuccessful  war 
against  hosts  of  assailants,  and  seasoning  his  maledic- 
tions, according  to  his  quality,  with  such  oaths  and 
curses  as  came  most  readily  to  hand.  As  soon  as  the 
first  gleam  of  the  morning  light  appeared,  we  were  on 
our  legs ;  and,  after  the  usual  preliminaries  of  fried  mut- 
ton chops  and  hot  tea,  without  milk,  and  damper  without 
butter,  we  prepared  for  our  march. 

"  Well,  Richard,"  said  the  magistrate,  ''  much  obliged 
to  you  for  your  night's  lodging.  But  we  must  not  cat 
you  out  of  house  and  home.  You  will  just  give  this  to 
your  wife  (proffering  a  four-dollar  bank  note)  to  make 
the  pot  boil." 

''Not  I,  sir,"  said  our  host;  "you  don't  think  I'd 
take  money  from  you,  sir,  after  all  your  goodness  to  me. 
You  are  welcome  to  all  I  can  offer  you;  but  you  don't 
think,  sir,  I  would  be  paid  for  seeing  my" — friends,  he 
was  about  to  say,  but  he  checked  himself—"  for  being 
hospitable." 

"  Very  well,  Dick,  just  as  you  like." 

But  as  I  did  not  like  to  consume  the  man's  provisions 


404     Try  to  Find  the   Lost  Track. 

without  recompensing  liim  for  it,  I  pressed  a  two-dollar 
note  on  the  lady  of  the  mansion ;  and  as  my  friend  told 
me  that  he  had  contrived  to  convey  the  rejected  four- 
dollar  note  to  the  same  quarter,  we  had  the  satisfaction 
of  feeling  that  our  visit  would  not  put  the  family  to  any 
inconvenience. 

There  had  been  a  heavy  fall  of  snow  during  the  night, 
and  it  lay  some  inches  thick  on  the  ground.  The  clouds 
threatened  more ;  and  we  resumed  our  pursuit  with  no 
very  agreeable  anticipations. 

"Now,  Sanders,"  said  the  magistrate,  "let  me  see 
what  you  are  worth  in  a  difficulty.  Which  is  our  way  ? 
and  how  are  we  to  find  the  track  of  the  runaways  ?  for 
this  snow  will  have  covered  up  all  traces  of  their  footsteps 
— the  horses'  and  all." 

"  Never  fear,"  said  the  constable,  "  the  same  snow  that 
has  hid  one  track  will  show  another.  If  a  snow-track 
is  bad  for  following,  it's  worse  for  hiding;  they  can't  get 
away  from  us;  and  if  I  don't  find  'em,  as  sure  as  ever 
Scroggs  would  nose  a  bottle  of  rum  in  a  plant,  I'll  for- 
feit my  ticket  of  leave." 

With  this  professional  encouragement,  we  set  our- 
selves diligently  to  work  to  discover  the  lost  track. 


The  Chase — Scroggs's  Pathos — Confirmation  of  the  Fugitive — Un- 
expected Information — A  Sailor  on  Horseback — A  new  Arrival. 

We  were  now  in  the  most  fertile  part  of  Van  Die- 
men's  Land,  the  agricultural  district  in  which  the 
greatest  part  of  the  wheat  grown  in  the  colony  was  then 
raised,  and  which,  from  its  fertility  and  its  propin(|uity 
to  water-carriage,  is  particularly  adapted  for  tillage- 
farms.  The  soil  in  this  district  is  above  the  average 
quality  of  the  land  in  the  island;  some  of  the  wheat 
lands  having  yielded  good  crops  for  more  than  fifteen 
years  without  manure  or  artificial  irrigation;  but  it  is 
not  suited  for  sheep  and  cattle,  the  unlocated  grazing- 
ground  being  too  limited  in  extent.  From  the  desirable 
nature  of  the  locality — the  facility  of  water-carriage  be- 
ing such  a  prodigious  advantage  for  the  transport  of 
grain  in  a  young  colony — small  farms  soon  became  nu- 
merous in  this  neighbourhood,  but,  from  their  close 
proximity,  there  can  be,  of  course,  but  few  opportunities 
for  back  runs. 

Our  direction  lay  on  one  side  of  these  settlements, 
and  as  it  was  early  morning,  we  did  not  meet  with  a 
single  person  on  our  route,  nor  did  we  think  it  worth 
while  to  go  out  of  our  way  to  seek  for  information,  as  it 
would  have  been  a  certain  loss  of  time,  which  was  very 
precious,  for  a  very  uncertain  benefit ;  besides,  we  could 
not  tell  whether  we  might  not  do  more  mischief  than 

(405) 


406  Scrogg's  Pathos. 

good  by  entrusting  our  object  to  promiscuous  persons. 
We  kept  steadily  on,  therefore,  for  five  or  six  miles,  and 
then  we  crossed  the  line  on  which  we  calculated  the  pur- 
sued party  would  pass,  hoping  to  hit  on  their  track,  but 
without  success,  and  it  was  not  until  we  got  near 
Brighton  Plains,  to  the  right,  that  we  came  on  their 
footsteps. 

"You  see,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  "we  have 'em;  they 
can't  escape  us  now;  but  by  the  sinking  of  the  marks, 
they  must  have  made  good  use  of  their  time  in  the 
night." 

"  The  poor  little  girl  must  have  suffered  terribly  from 
the  cold  of  last  night,"  observed  the  magistrate;  "it 
was  brutal  to  expose  a  child  of  such  tender  years  to  the 
inclemency  of  a  winter's  frost  and  snow." 

"  Poor  little  thing !"  the  passive  Scroggs  ventured  to 
remark;  "poor  little  thing!  you  don't  think  they  cut 
her  throat  then,  sir,  do  you?  The  sight  of  that  blood 
has  been  worrying  me  ever  since.  I  remember  once, 
before  I  came  to  this  country,  I  had  to  slaughter  a  lamb 
for  my  master,  and,  by  mistake,  I  killed  the  pet-lamb  of 
my  young  Missis.  She  came  up  just  as  I  was  a-doing 
of  it,  and  I  never  shall  forget  the  look  she  gave  me.  I 
was  standing  with  the  lamb's  head  between  my  legs  and 
my  knife " 

"  Well — well,  my  man,"  said  I,  for  the  picture  that 
he  had  conjured  up  made  me  feel  sick — "  that  will  do. 
We  can't  be  sure  whether  the  child  is  alive  or  not,  but 
it  is  likely  that  she  is,  by  their  taking  the  horse;  I  wish 
we  could  find  some  sign  that  would  relieve  us  from  our 
suspense.  Keep  your  eyes  open,  and  there's  a  bottle  of 
rum  for  you,  if  you  can  discover  anything  to  help  us  in 
our  search." 


Two  Tracks.  407 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir,  I'll  keep  a  sharp  look-out ;  not  that  I 
care  about  the  rum  ;  it's  the  child,  poor  little  thing.  I 
fancy  I  am  always  sccin^  her  with  hor  poor  little  head 
hanging  down,  and  her  throat " 

"  There — there,  say  no  more  about  it,  but  get  on 
ahead,  and  try  if  you  can  make  any  discovery.  An 
hour — nay,  a  few  minutes — may  make  the  difference  of 
life  or  death." 

Thus  urged,  the  obedient  Scroggs  moved  forward  in 
advance  with  some  appearance  of  alacrity,  and,  stimu- 
lated partly  by  the  present  danger  of  the  child,  whose 
fate  I  believe  he  sincerely  commiserated,  and  partly  by 
the  bottle  of  rum  in  prospective,  he  cast  his  eyes  vigi- 
lantly about  on  all  sides,  and  it  was  not  long  before  he 
had  the  satisfaction  of  detecting  a  digression  in  the  path 
of  the  pursued. 

"  There's  been  something  new  going  on  here,"  .'aid  he  ; 
"  the  small-footed  man  has  gone  away  to  the  left,  and 
the  other  man  and  the  horse  have  gone  on." 

','  It's  the  small  foot,  "  said  Sanders,  ''  that's  plain 
enough;  and  he  has  gone  off  to  the  left,  and  I  don't 
see  the  sign  of  his  having  come  back.  What's  to  be 
done  now  ?     There  is  some  dodjre  in  this  that's  certain." 

o 

"  Do  you  three,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  go  on  till  you 
get  to  the  rise  with  the  big  gum-tree  on  the  top  of  it, 
and  wait  there  till  I  join  you.  I  will  follow  this  track 
for  a  mile  or  so,  and  then  we  can  consult  on  the  best 
mode  of  proceeding,  should  it  appear  that  the  parties  we 
are  in  pursuit  of  have  separated." 

He  cantered  off,  accordingly,  and  we  presently  lost 
sight  of  him  behind  a  little  hill,  but  before  we  reached 
the  big  gum-tree,  he  passed  us  at  an  angle,  and  waited 


408  Satistactory  News. 

for  our  coming  up,  -when  he  communicated  the  result  of 
his  visit. 

Behind  the  hill  there  was  a  stock-keeper's  hut,  which  we 
could  not  see  from  the  spot  where  we  were,  and  there 
the  magistrate  learned  that  before  dawn  of  day  a  new 
settler  had  called  at  the  hut,  and  asked  for  refreshment, 
saying  that  he  had  a  companion  whom  he  had  left  at  a 
little  distance,  and  for  whom,  as  well  as  for  himself,  he 
wanted  a  supply  of  provisions. 

"  It  was  easy  to  tell  he  was  a  new  settler,"  said  the 
stock -keeper,  "  because  he  had  on  a  black  coat  and  waist- 
coat, and  a  new  hat  in  the  bush,  and  didn't  mind  show- 
ing his  money  to  strangers  !" 

The  stock-keeper  gave  him  what  he  had  ready,  which 
consisted  of  some  cold  mutton-chops,  and  nearly  a  whole 
damper,  with  about  ten  pounds  of  uncooked  meat,  for 
which  the  stranger  gave  him  a  four-dollar  note.  My 
friend  asked  to  see  the  note,  and,  pretending  that  he 
wanted  a  note  of  that  particular  signature,  the  stock- 
keeper  readily  exchanged  it  for  other  small  notes. 

"  This  note,"  observed  the  magistrate,  "  may  help  to 
trace  our  man." 

My  friend  did  not  think  it  necessary  to  tell  the  inha- 
bitant of  the  hut  that  we  were  in  pursuit  of  this  new 
settler,  ''  as  it  was  better,"  he  said,  "  not  to  be  making 
confidants  without  necessity."  As  the  track  of  the 
small  foot  in  the  snow  was  easily  seen  on  leaving  the 
hut,  he  followed  it  up  to  the  point  where  we  rejoined 
him. 

This  was  so  far  satisfactory  ;  we  were  on  the  track  of 
this  John  Wolscy,  or  John  Shirley,  and  we  could  not 
be  very  far  from  him,  but  still  there  was  no  trace  of  the 


Hungry!  409 

little  girl ;  but  the  manner  of  his  obtaining  provi^^ion.'^, 
in  going  alone  to  the  hut,  seemed  to  show  that  he  had 
left  the  child  with  his  companion,  from  the  fear  of  being 
traced  the  more  easily  if  she  was  seen  with  him.  This 
consideration  gave  us  a  hope,  so  that  we  continued  the 
pursuit  with  renewed  spirit. 

We  were  beginning  to  feel  the  want  of  food  ourselves, 
however,  and  we  were  at  a  loss  where  to  obtain  it  with- 
out considerable  delay;  and  it  was  necessary  that  we 
should  not  neglect  to  procure  a  supply  while  we  wore 
within  a  reasonable  distance  of  the  settled  part  of  the 
country,  for  our  route  was  leading  us  more  and  more 
into  the  bush ;  the  parties  whom  we  were  pursuing  being 
obviously  desirous  of  keeping  away  from  the  inhabited 
parts  of  the  district  through  which  they  fled. 

We  did  not  allow  these  thoughts  to  slacken  our  pace, 
and  leaving  Bagdad  on  our  left,  we  continued  our  way 
through  a  very  difficult  country,  still  with  the  track  in 
view,  till  we  came  to  a  point  which  we  calculated  was 
abreast  of  the  Green  Ponds.  It  was  now  considerably 
past  noon,  and  we  were  desperately  hungry,  but  we  did 
not  like  to  relax  in  our  pursuit,  for  we  expected  every 
minute  to  come  up  with  the  fugitives,  when  the  track 
made  a  sudden  bend  to  the  left,  and  we  observed  the 
same  divergence  as  before,  but  this  time  it  was  the  broad- 
footed  man.  Not  caring  for  him,  we  did  not  stop  to 
examine  into  his  movements,  but  the  reason  of  his  ab- 
sence was  presently  explained,  for  about  three  miles  far- 
ther we  found  the  track  of  a  second  horse  joining  the 
track  which  we  were  pursuing;  and  from  tjie  appearance 
of  the  strides  of  the  two  horses,  and  the  marks  of  tlie 
snow  that  was  kicked  up,  it  was  plain  that  they  had  con- 


410  Rapid   Pursuit. 

trived  to  get  possession  of  a  second  torse,  and  that  Wol- 
sey,  not  being  detained  by  his  companion  being  on  foot, 
•was  pushing  forward  with  all  speed. 

On  this  the  magistrate  immediately  decided  what  to  do. 
He  wrote  on  a  leaf  of  his  pocket-book,  in  pencil,  a  re- 
quest addressed  to  any  one  who  might  read  it,  that,  for 
the  purpose  of  furthering  the  ends  of  justice,  the  con- 
stables might  be  supplied  with  horses,  for  the  hire,  or 
the  purchase  of  which,  if  necessary,  he  would  be  respon- 
sible. 

" Now  Sanders,"  said  he,  ''there's  not  a  moment  to  be 
lost ;  I  and  Mr.  Thornley  will  follow  them  up  on  horse- 
back, and  take  the  chance  of  what  comes ;  get  up  with 
them  we  must,  or  we  may  bo  too  late.  Try  to  procure 
horses  and  follow  us  with  all  speed,  for  we  may  want 
your  assistance.  And  now  do  your  best.  You  will  not 
leave  me  at  this  push,  I  suppose,  Thornley?"  said  he; 
"  but  if  it  does  not  suit  you  to  stay  away  from  your 
farm,  I  will  go  alone." 

"  I  will  not  leave  you,"  said  I; — ''if  you  have  duty 
to  prompt  you,  I  have  inclination." 

"  I  have  both  duty  and  inclination,"  said  be,  and  off  we 
set  at  a  smart  canter.  The  party  whom  we  pursued  was 
evidently  guided  by  some  one  who  had  an  accurate  know- 
ledge of  the  countr)',  for  their  track  proceeded  in  a 
straight  line  across  the  island,  so  far  as  was  consistent 
with  their  keeping  clear  of  the  various  small  settlements 
and  farms  in  their  route.  In  this  way  wc  passed  through 
a  country  much  less  hilly  than  before,  skirting  on  our 
left  the  fat  flat  of  the  "  Cross  Marsh,"  and  a  few  miles 
farther  the  beautiful  district  of  "  The  Lovely  Banks," 
till  we  came  to  the  base  of  the  Tier  over  which  tho  road 


The  Pursuit  Grows  Warm.        411 

had  been  cut  by  a  steep  hill  to  Jcricbo,  which  is  about 
forty  miles  from  Ilobart  Town.  Having  got  over  Spring- 
II ill  Tier,  which  winded  our  horses  a  bit,  we  had  a  stronn^ 
inclination  to  make  a  tour  to  our  left,  to  Jericho,  to  get 
some  refreshment ;  but  the  sight  of  the  fresh  track  pro- 
voked and  incited  us,  and  we  pushed  on  after  them 
through  Fourteen-Tree  Plain,  and  past  Lemon  Springs, 
till  we  got  to  Oatlands,  the  neighbourhood  in  which 
the  notorious  bush-ranger  Howe,  performed  many  of  his 
exploits.  It  was  in  this  part  of  the  country  that  he  made 
the  remarkable  escape  which  is  still  remembered  in  tho 
colony,  and  related  to  new-comers  over  a  bush  fire  and  a 
kangaroo  steamer.  He  had  been  taken,  and  his  arms 
bound  behind  him  ;  one  soldier  with  a  loaded  musket 
went  before  him,  and  another  behind.  By  some  means 
never  discovered  he  contrived  to  get  possession  of  a  knife, 
with  which  he  quietly  cut  the  bands  that  fastened  him. 
Watching  his  opportunity,  as  they  passed  round  tho 
narrow  base  of  a  high  hill,  and  before  the  soldier  behind 
had  come  into  sight,  he  sprung  on  the  one  before,  and 
stabbing  him  in  the  back  laid  him  prostrate.  Seizing 
his  musket  he  fired  at  the  soldier  behind,  who  was  has- 
tening up,  and  shot  him  dead.  He  then  escaped  into 
the  bush. 

But  we  met  with  no  living  thing,  and  we  still  kept 
on,  angry  at  not  being  able  to  overtake  the  black-coated 
gentleman  and  his  victim,  and  we  passed,  with  longing 
eyes  and  ravenous  appetites,  Albany  Vale  and  St.  Peter's 
Pass.  We  had  now  a  fine  level  country,  but  thinly  cov- 
vered  with  trees,  to  the  neighbourhood  of  Antill's  Ponds. 
By  this  time  our  horses  were  nearly  exhausted,  but  tho 
tracks  now  appeared  fresher  and  fresher  as  we  gained 


412  S  A  L  r  -  P  A  N    P  L  A  I  N  S  . 

upon  the  fugitives ;  we  were  tempted  to  make  another 
effort,  and  we  presently  reached  Salt-Pan  Plains.  At 
any  other  time  we  should  have  taken  time  to  admire  the 
magnificent  view  of  these  extensive  plains,  where  the  eye 
can  range  for  many  miles  without  obstruction ;  for  iu 
a  country  where  timber  abounds,  which  forms  one  of  the 
most  serious  obstacles  to  the  increase  of  a  settler's  tillage, 
the  sight  of  a  large  expanse  of  country  clear  of  trees 
never  fails  to  excite  in  a  colonist  of  Van  Diemen's  Land 
the  most  pleasurable  contemplations.  We  could  not 
help  pulling  up  our  tired  horses  for  one  minute  to  ad- 
mire the  sinking  of  the  setting  sun  behind  the  lofty 
mountains  to  our  left,  causing  their  cloud-capped  tops 
to  glow  with  a  peculiar  light  of  serene  and  placid  bril- 
liancy. 

To  the  east  of  these  plains  are  extensive  ponds  satu- 
rated with  salt,  from  which  the  settlers  within  reach  ob- 
tain their  supplies  in  the  summer  season  by  evaporation, 
by  means  of  the  sun's  heat.  In  front  of  us  was  the 
superb  mountain  of  Ben  Lomond,  the  outlines  of  which, 
though  the  dusk  was  coming  on,  were  still  distinct  in 
the  white  line  of  snow  which  covered  its  towering  summit. 

"  One  effort  more,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  and  we  shall 
come  up  with  them." 

But  our  horses  were  sadly  fagged,  and  in  want  of  food, 
as  well  as  ourselves.  We  alighted,  took  off  their  sad- 
dles, and  rubbed  dov>'n  their  backs  with  our  handker- 
chiefs. 

"  Don't  let  our  horses  get  stiff,"  said  my  friend  ;  "  as 
long  as  they're  warm,  they  will  keep  on,  but  if  they  get 
Btiflfened  in  the  cold  they  will  knock  up.  One  effort 
more." 


Our   Horses   Exhausted.        413 

But  our  horses,  good  as  they  were,  and  fitted,  like  most 
of  the  horses  on  the  island,  to  bear  long  and  continued 
fatigue  with  but  scanty  refreshment,  soon  showed  une- 
quivocal symptoms  of  exhaustion.  We  turned  to  the 
left,  therefore,  towards  Blackman's  Bridge,  near  which 
we  knew  we  could  obtain  food  and  shelter. 

With  that  sort  of  instinct  which  I  have  often  observed 
in  the  animal,  our  wearied  horses  pricked  up  their  ears 
as  we  turned  them  in  the  direction  of  the  inn;  and  snort- 
ing with  visible  signs  of  gladness,  their  strength  appeared 
to  revive,  and  they  bore  us  gaily  to  our  place  of  rest. 
Our  first  care  was  to  see  them  properly  tended.  We  gave 
them  a  warm  mash  of  siftings,  and  let  them  pick  a  little 
at  some  barley  in  the  straw,  till  they  had  recovered  from 
the  excitement  of  their  travel.  In  the  meanwhile,  we 
put  some  barley  in  soak  in  boiling  water,  for  there  were 
no  oats  to  be  had,  which  we  mixed  with  a  small  portion 
of  siftings,  and  fed  them  well,  taking  care  not  to  give  too 
much  at  a  time.  We  took  particular  pains  to  have  them 
well  rubbed  down,  particularly  their  logs  and  heels,  for 
a  good  dressing  is  as  good  as  meat  and  drink  to  a  tired 
horse. 

"  You've  given  them  a  warming,"  said  the  ostler,  who, 
from  a  weaver  in  England,  had  become  the  tender  of 
horses  in  Van  Diemen's  Land ;  they  seem  to  be  made  of 
a  good  sort  of  stuff,  these  beasts,  but  they  look  a  little 
mottled  now  with  sweat,  like  shot  silk  by  a  side  light. 
Where  are  you  come  from  ?" 

"  We  have  come  some  distance,"  said  wo,  "  but  we 
have  ridden  very  fast,  which  has  blown  the  horses  a 
bit."  I  did  not  choose  to  tell  him  that  we  had  come 
nearly  seventy  miles  without  pulling  up,  although,  for 


414  A  Sailor  on   Horseback. 

the  honour  of  colonial  horse-flesh,  I  had  a  strong  inclina- 
tion to  brag  of  it. 

Having  seen  our  horses'  feet  steeped  with  a  cooling 
application,  and  our  minds  being  at  ease  about  their  com- 
fort, we  entered  the  public  room  of  the  inn. 

I  need  scarcely  say,  that  while  we  were  looking  to  our 
horses,  the  usual  meal  of  the  country,  the  eternal  mutton  ■ 
chops,  were  prepared  for  our  entertainment  by  the  peo- 
ple of  the  house,  to  which  were  added  some  kangaroo-tail 
soup,  and  the  unusual  luxury  of  pancakes  made  with 
eggs.  Some  capital  bottled  stout,  Barclay's,  of  course, 
added  a  zest  to  our  supper,  and  by  the  aid  of  some  excel- 
lent brandy,  we  soon  found  ourselves  restored  to  our 
usual  spirits. 

We  were  discussing  the  propriety  of  a  second  tumbler, 
when  the  clattering  of  a  horse's  hoofs,  which  suddenly 
stopped  at  the  door  of  our  hostel,  and  the  slight  bustle 
usual  on  such  occasions,  announced  the  arrival  of  a  new 
guest.  As  there  was  only  one  room  for  travellers  in  the 
inn,  which  had  been  hastily  built  of  weather-boards  on 
speculation,  the  landlord  ushered  in  the  new-comer  to 
the  apartment  where  we  were  sitting,  and  he  entered  the 
room  without  ceremony,  shaking  from  his  rough  great 
coat  a  plentiful  shower  of  snow. 

"  Servant,  gentlemen,  hope  I  don't  intrude.  Land- 
lord— steward — landlord — d' — ,  that  is,  bless  my  eyes, 
get  us  something  to  eat.  Here  have  I  been  riding  on 
that  rickety  old  craft;  d' —  him — that  is,  bless  him — 
he's  as  crank  as  a  Norway  timber-ship — for  I  don't  know 
how  long,  and  the  cold  has  made  me  so  sharp  set,  I'm 
ready  to  eat  the  purser  !" 

The  stranger,  whom  we  had  regarded  with  some  cu- 


Sailor  or  Landsman?  415 

riosity,  as  he  gave  vent  to  bii?  nautical  eifusious,  was  a 
seafaring  man,  by  his  dress,  which  his  language  seemed  to 
corroborate ;  but  as  I  had  recently  attempted  the  per- 
sonation of  that  character  myself,  T  was  not  disposed 
to  give  him  credit  for  the  reality  without  further  exami- 
nation. 

Thought  I  to  myself,  "  It's  all  very  well  to  call  a  horse 
a  'craft,'  and  to  sport  your  'starboard,'  and  'larboard,' 
but  who  knows  that  this  is  not  another  would-be  sailor?" 

I  gave  a  glance  at  the  magistrate,  as  I  revolved  these 
thoughts,  and  I  saw  by  the  gleg  of  his  eye  that  he  had 
the  same  suspicion  as  myself;  so  by  a  sort  of  tacit  con- 
federacy, we  began  to  sift  our  new  acquaintance. 

"  You  don't  seem  to  have  enjoyed  your  ride,  sir?" 
said  my  friend. 

"  Enjoy  it  I  Lots  of  enjoyment  in  riding  an  old  brute 
like  that  in  a  snow-storm.  I  thought  it  never  snowed 
in  this  country?" 

"Sometimes,"  I  said,  "but  not  often,  and  snow  does 
not  remain  long  on  the  ground.  You  seem,  sir,  to  have 
had  a  feathering  ?" 

"  Feathering,  do  you  call  it?  It  wasn't  much  like  a 
feather  bed,  I  can  tell  you.  Three  times  have  I  been 
capsized  coming  from  that  last  place — Antill  Ponds,  I 
think  they  call  it;  they  have  the  queerest  names  for 
places  in  this  country.  Oh  !  here's  my  supper;  mutton- 
chops  !  of  course — I'm  d' —  that  is,  I'm  blessed  if  I've 
ate  anything  but  mutton-chops  since  I've  been  in  the 
country ;  the  sheep  in  these  parts  are  all  chops,  from 
head  to  starn,  I  think  I" 

"There's  some  capital  kangaroo-tail  soup,"  suggested 
the  landlord. 


416        Not  used  to   Horseback. 

"  Kangaroo-tail  soup  !  Ah!  there  it  is  again.  I'm 
blessed  if  I've  heard  about  anything  but  kangaroo-tail 
soup  all  the  while  I  was  at  Launceston.  They  souped 
me  there  night  and  day.  It  was  a  regular  caulking. 
If  I'd  gone  on  with  it,  I  do  believe  I  should  have  been 
quite  transmogrified,  for  I  felt  a  tail  a-growing,  and  was 
beginning  to  hop  already  !     But  d' — " 

"  What's  the  matter  ?"  said  I,  for  our  facetious  friend 
suddenly  stopped,  and  with  knife  and  fork  outstretched, 
seemed  to  be  taken  with  a  fit.  I  got  up  instantly,  with 
visible  signs  of  alarm,  to  assist  him ;  but  he  held  up  the 
hand  that  had  the  fork  in  it. 

''^Vvast  there!"  said  he,  "I  was  only  counting 
twenty." 

"Counting  twenty!  what  on  earth  do  you  count 
twenty  for  ?" 

''Oh,  you  see,  my  wife  made  me  promise,  whenever  I 
was  going  to  swear,  to  count  twenty,  to  stop  it's  coming 
out ;  so  I  always  do  it,  'cept  in  a  gale  of  wind  or  so, 
when  one  can't  be  particular;  and  that's  why  I  say 
'bless  me,'  because,  as  my  wife  says,  if  I  must  say 
something  to  relieve  myself,  better  say  something  good 
than  the  other.  Ay,  ay,  she's  the  one  to  keep  a  good 
look-out  ahead ;  there's  nothing  in  the  voyage  of  life 
like  having  a  consort.  She  was  like  to  lose  me  though, 
once,  for  my  craft  gave  a  tremendous  lurch  just  before  I 
got  here.  I  held  hard  on  by  the  leather  tackle,  but  it 
was  of  no  use ;  down  I  came  by  the  run." 

**  You  are  not  used  tn  riding  on  horseback,  I  sup- 
pose?" said  my  friend. 

"  Used  to  it !  no — nnr  never  shall  be.  I  started  off 
to   see   the  interior  of  the  country,  ten  days  ago,  and 


The   S  a  1  l  o  k  '  s   L)  i;  s  x  i  .\  a  t  i  o  n  . 

ioanaged  very  well  -while  I  trusted  to  my  own  legs, 
though  it's  not  so  pleasant  walking  on  shore  as  at  sea — 
there's  no  motion  to  steady  you.  But  when  I  was  at 
Jericho — there's  a  rum  name  for  a  place  ! — I  got  a  letter 
from  my  skipper  to  tell  me  I  must  come  back  with  all 
sail.  So  what  did  I  do,  but  I  hired  that  horse,  that 
somebody  wanted  to  send  back  to  Luunceston." 

"  But  that  enabled  you  to  get  on  quicker  V 

"  Slower,  by  four  knots  !  for  such  a  pitching  about  I 
never  had  before  !  It  wasn't  easy  to  get  steerage-way 
at  all,  the  thing  was  so  slow  and  lumber-some;  and  when 
you  did,  it  wasn't  much  better,  for  somehow  the  cantan- 
kerous brute  never  would  answer  the  helm  the  right 
way,  let  alone  the  awkwardness  of  the  tiller  ropes  coming 
aft  instead  of  for'ard,  which  kept  confusing  me ;  at  last 
I  clapped  my  hand  to  his  tail,  and  then  the  brute  stopped 
and  gave  a  heave  up  with  his  starn  legs,  but  I  contrived, 
by  twisting  his  tail  hard  to  starboard  or  larboard,  as  I 
wanted  it,  to  make  him  steer  this  side  and  that;  for  I 
tried  to  keep  him  in  the  middle  of  the  road,  to  have  the 
force  of  the  tide,  and  he  kept  slieering  to  the  side,  as  if 
he  was  in  a  back  eddy.  It  was  a  rare  sight  to  see,  I 
fancy  !     But  here  I  am,  safe  at  last  !" 

''  Starboard  and  larboard  !"  said  I  to  mj'self,  "  it's  all 
very  well,  but  it  won't  do  !"  "  And  pray,  sir,"  said  I, 
aloud,  "  how  was  it  that  you  happened  to  get  aboard 
that  clumsy  craft  that  has  occasioned  these  mishaps?" 

"  Eh  ?"  said  he,  inquiringly,  and  suspending  his 
draught  of  rum-and-water ;  "and  pray,  mate,"  said  he, 
with  an  incredulous  grin,  "  what  ship  do  you  belong  to?" 

"  Me !" 

"  Ay — look    at   your  ris;  !     Oh,    oh  I — I    see  ! — Yes, 
27 


418  News  from   Yorkshire. 

yes,"  putting  his  finger  on  his  nose ;  ''false  colours! 
Want  to  steal  off! — Blue  jacket  better  than  a  yellow 
one — eh  ?" 

"  Why,"  said  I,  "  what  do  you  take  me  for  ?" 

"  Not  for  a  sailor  !  But,  never  fear,  never  tell  tales  I 
No  business  of  mine !  Wish  you  well  out  of  it,  and 
better  luck  another  time,  that's  all  I  can  say." 

Thought  I,  to  myself,  '^  the  tables  are  turned  drolly 
enough,"  for  I  had  on  the  sailor's  dress  in  which  I  had 
disguised  myself  in  Hobart  Town,  with  the  exception  of 
the  little  tarpaulin  hat,  which  I  had  replaced  by  my  own 
black  beaver,  and  I  was  exposed  to  the  very  suspicion 
which  I  had  rather  too  hastily  formed  of  our  new  ac- 
quaintance. This  was  provoking,  especially  as  the  real 
sailor  obstinately  persisted  in  mistaking  me  for  a  pris- 
oner in  disguise,  trying  to  escape  from  justice. 

"  And  pray,"  said  I,  ''how  do  you  know  I  am  not  a 
sailor?" 

"  How  do  I  know?  Lord  love  ye  !  D'ye  think  one 
sailor  can't  tell  another,  and  know  a  landsman  from  a 
blue-jacket  ?  Did  you  ever  see  a  sailor  sit  with  his  back 
against  a  chair,  and  one  leg  crossed  over  another  that 
fashion  ?  what  would  become  of  his  sea-legs  ?  But  never 
mind  ;  I'm  as  mute  as  a  stock-fish ;  a  Yorkshireman, 
you  know,  can  see  through  an  inch-board,  but  he  never 
tells  what's  behind  it." 

"  A  Yorkshireman,  are  you  ?"  said  I  eagerly;  "  from 
what  part  ?" 

"From  Whitby ;  that  is,  I  served  my  time  at  Whitby, 
but  I  was  born  on  Squire  Shirley's  estate,  near  Lime- 
dale,  close  by  Ilcron  Abbey — everybody  knows  it  in 
Yorkshire.  My  father  was  a  tenant  of  Squire  Shirley's, 
but  I  would  go  to  sea,  as  boys  will  sometimes." 


A   Consultation.  419 

"  Then  you  know  this  Squire  Shirley  ?" 

"To  be  sure  I  did — William  Shirley;  but  he's  dead 
now." 

"  How  long  ago  V 

"  It's  about  two  years  since." 

"  Had  he  any  children?" 

''  No  children,  but  he  had  two  brothers." 

"xind  what  is  become  of  them  ?" 

"The  eldest,  George,  went  away  somewhere,  nobody 
knew  whither.  He  was  a  wild  chap  in  his  youth,  was 
George;  but  the  youngest,  John,  is  at  the  Abbey,  be- 
cause, as  there  was  no  account  of  George,  of  course  John 
was  next  heir  to  the  estates." 

"  What  are  the  estates  worth  ?"  asked  I, 

"  I  don't  know  that,  but  it  is  one  of  the  prettiest  es- 
tates in  the  county." 

"Did  William  leave  any  will?"  asked  the  magistrate. 

"There  was  a  talk  about  some  will,  but  I  never 
knew  the  rights  of  it.  It  was  said  George  died  years 
ago,  but  some  people  thought  there  was  some  mystery 
about  it." 

I  exchanged  looks  with  my  friend  the  magistrate  at 
this  information,  which  had  come  on  us  thus  unexpect- 
edly, and  in  so  strange  a  way,  but  we  did  not  think  it 
necessary  to  communicate  to  our  new  acquaintance  the 
deep  interest  which  we  took  in  these  inquiries;  and,  un- 
der the  pretext  of  our  seeing  our  horses  well  littered 
down  for  the  night,  we  left  the  room,  and  bad  a  short 
private  conversation  together  on  our  way  to  the  stable. 

"  Can  we  make  any  use  of  our  new  acquaintance?" 
said  I. 

"  I  don't  see  that  he  would  be  •>!' .- viy  use  at  present," 


420  A  New  Arrival. 

said  the  magistrate;  "  he  would  be  rather  in  the  way  than 
otherwise.  But  we  shall  see  when  we  get  to  Launceston, 
and  then  we  can  act  accordingly." 

The  snow  lay  two  or  three  inches  deep  on  the  ground, 
but  the  night  was  clear  and  bright,  and  we  regretted  the 
time  that  we  were  losing,  but  it  was  unavoidable;  for  the 
darkness  of  the  night,  which  aids  a  man  to  escape,  is  an 
effectual  bar  to  his  pursuit  in  a  country  where  he  can 
be  followed  only  by  the  foot-marks  that  he  leaves  behind 
him.  We  were  obliged,  therefore,  to  put  up  with  the 
delay,  and,  indeed,  our  horses  would  not  have  been  in  a 
condition  to  travel  before  the  rooming;  so,  bidding  our 
new  acquaintance  good  night,  and  leaving  him  to  the 
enjoyment  of  a  large  tumbler  of  grog,  in  which  we  had 
induced  the  landlord  to  join  him,  we  retired  to  our  beds, 
having  made  arrangements  for  resuming  our  journey  at 
the  first  dawn  of  day  on  the  morrow. 

But  the  course  of  events  did  not  allow  us  to  enjoy  our 
rest  unbroken.  A  little  after  midnight  we  were  waked 
up  by  a  vigorous  knocking  at  the  door  from  the  butt-end 
of  a  heavy  whip,  and  we  heard  a  voice  outside  demand- 
ing admittance. 


Cjiajitrr  ^liirtti-rigjjtlj. 

The  Van  Diemen's  Land  Jockey — Swopping— The  Chase  Renewed 
— Retributive  Justice — The  Natives — New  Dangers. 

"  You  need'nt  knock  the  door  in  with  your  hammer- 
ing," called  out  a  voice,  which  I  recognised  as  that  of 
the  landlord  of  the  Emu — "  can't  you  wait  till  people 
put  a  bit  of  clothes  on  ?  Who  are  you  ?  and  what  do 
you  want  at  this  time  of  night?" 

"  Who  am  I,  and  what  do  I  want  ?  Well,  that's  a 
good  one  !     Don't  you  know  Charley  Chaifem  ?" 

"  The  Sandy  Bay  Jockey !  By  George !  here's  a  spree  ! 
AVhy,  what  has  brought  you  to  this  side  of  the  island  ? 
— and  snow  on  the  ground  too." 

"  Why,  a  horse  has  brought  me ;  that  is,  two  horses ; 
one  that  I'm  on,  and  one  that  I'm  off;  and  there's  a 
riddle  for  you,  Master  Jemmy." 

''  And  where  have  you  come  from  ?" 

"  I  only  left  the  Coal  River  this  morning.  What  do 
you  think  ?  Some  busy  gentleman  has  walked  off  with 
my  bay  horse  !  He  didn't  come  home  lust  night  for  his 
corn,  and  I  knew  there  was  something  wrong,  but  I  could 
do  nothing  till  daylight,  and  then  I  tracked  hiiu  right 
across  the  country,  with  two  other  blackguards  with  him, 
for  there  were  three  horses  in  all,  and  afterwards  a  fourth 
— so  there's  a  lot  of  them  in  for  it — till  the  dark  came, 
and  then  I  cut  across  to  the  high  road.     But  don't  stand 

(  421  ) 


422  The  Jockey's  Arrival. 

talking  there;  open  the  door,  and  be  alive;  I  want  to 
come  in  and  get  a  snack  of  something." 

As  I  guessed  that  this  visit  from  the  owner  of  the 
stolen  horse  would  render  some  explanation  necessary,  I 
thought  it  best  to  meet  the  difficulty  at  once,  so  I  got  up 
and  dressed  myself.  By  the  time  that  I  had  entered  the 
public  room,  which  was  next  to  my  bedroom,  the  inqui- 
sitive Charley  Chaifem  had  visited  the  stable,  which  I 
expected,  where  he  had  examined  the  magistrate's  horse 
and  mine,  which  were  comfortably  reposing  themselves 
on  luxurious  beds  of  straw. 

"  He  can't  be  far  ofiF,"  said  he  to  the  landlord,  alluding 
to  the  thief,  in  continuation  of  some  comments  in  which 
he  had  been  pleased  to  indulge  in  the  stable,  "  for  here 
are  two  of  the  blackguards  safely  housed  with  you.  I 
know  them  by  the  shoeing  of  their  horses ;  they're  Nick 
Naylor's  shoes,  of  Frog-street,  in  Camp.  You  maj'  al- 
ways swear  to  his  shoes  when  they're  new.  I  tracked 
them  all  the  way,  and  I  could  pick  'em  out  among  a 
hundred.  A  pretty  pass  the  country  is  come  to,  when 
people  take  to  stealing  of  horses  !  but  I'll  make  the 
rascals  swing  for  it,  if  there's  law  to  be  had  in  the 
colony." 

'' A  very  pleasing  compliment,"  thought  I,  "to  me 
and  my  friend.  My  good  sir,"  I  said,  "  I  am  the  owner 
of  one  of  those  horses,  and  my  friend  is  the  owner  of 
the  other.  I  could  not  help  overhearing  what  you  said 
as  you  entered  the  room,  but  I  assure  you  you  are  mis- 
taken, as  I  could  easily  explain  to  you  if  I  was  at  lib- 
erty to  do  so." 

"  Hear  him  !"  cried  out  our  acquaintance  of  the  night 
before,  who  had  risen  from  his  wooden  sofa  with  the  ha- 


II  I  s   Accusation,  423 

bitual  readiuess  df  a  seaman — ''hear  \m\\  he  was  a 
sailor  last  night,  and  now  he's  jawing  away  like  a  sea- 
lawyer  !  I  say  uny  friend,"  said  he  to  mc,  ''  no  go  I  ch  ? 
grabbed  !  rather  unlucky;  but  sailors  shouldn't  meddle 
with  horses;  always  come  to  mischief  when  they  try 
to  show  off  like  the  long-tails." 

"  The  devil's  in  it,"  thought  I,  "  I  shall  be  in  another 
mess  if  I  don't  take  care  !" 

*'  The  long  and  the  short  of  it  is,"  said  I  aloud,  "  I 
know  no  more  where  your  hoi'se  is  than  you  do,  except 
that  I  have  been  following  it  all  day  as  well  as  yourself." 
"  The  long  and  the  short  of  it  is,"  said  the  angry 
jockey,  ''that  you  must  answer  for  this  before  a  magis- 
trate, and  then,  I  think,  my  hearty,  it  won't  be  long  be- 
fore they  make  short  work  of  you,"  giving  a  significant 
chuck  under  his  left  ear. 

"Why,  what's  all  this  about?"  said  the  magistrate, 
who  now  entered  the  room,  with  a  silk  handkerchief 
round  his  head,  and  a  blanket  by  way  of  dressing-gown. 
"What !  Charley  Chaffem  !  what  brings  you  here  ?" 

"Hurrah  !"  cried  Charley;  "here's  the  Clyde  magis- 
trate. Now,  my  beauty,  you're  booked,  and  no  mistake ; 
You  needn't  laugh — you'll  laugh  on  the  wrong  side  of 
your  mouth  presently.  I  charge  this  fellow  with  steal- 
ing my  horse,"  pointing  to  me  viciously;  "and  I  give 
him  into  custody." 

"  What,  my  friend  Thornley  !  why,  what  have  you  got, 
into  your  head,  Charley  ?  Oh  ! — I  see — I  see — it  wag 
your  horse  that  the  rascals  stole  last  night — or  I  suppose 
I  must  call  it  the  night  before  last,  for  it's  two  o'cloek 
in  the  morning  now.  We  have  had  a  rare  hunt  after 
him  all  day." 


424         His  Suspicions  Removed. 

"  Indeed  !"  said  the  jockey,  puzzled  to  understand  the 
meaning  of  what  he  heard — "  then  what  t'other  chap — 
_  beg  his  pardon,  Mr.  Thornley — said  was  true,  and  you 
and  he  have  been  in  pursuit  all  day  of  the  rascal  who 
made  off  with  my  horse  ?  Well !  that  beats  everything  ! 
But  you  might  as  well  have  run  after  the  wind  as  after 
Roderick  !  if  the  rascal  knew  how  to  ride  him.  I  think 
the  magistrate  knows  there's  not  a  faster  horse  nor 
sounder  bottom  in  the  colony  !" 

"  The  riddle's  out !"  said  my  friend ;  "  I  wondered  we 
could  not  overtake  the  runaways ;  we  have  been  hunting 
the  Sandy  Bay  racer  all  day  !  But  with  your  assistance, 
Charley,  I  think  we  may  do  it  now.  Do  you  know  this 
part  of  the  country  ?" 

''  Every  inch — all  over  the  country,  wherever  cattle 
have  strayed,  or  wild  horses  run.  I'll  be  bound  I  know 
every  pass  and  every  ford  in  the  country  wherever  the 
foot  of  white  man  has  been,  and  more  too,  for  the  matter 
of  that.  But  what's  to  be  done,  sir?  Of  course,  now 
we  are  with  you,  it's  all  right;  and  if  you're  taking 
the  matter  in  hand,  we  shall  be  sure  to  get  well  out 
of  it?" 

"  Can  we  make  any  progress  at  night,  Charley  ?  What 
do  you  think  ?" 

"No  use  in  life,  sir,  to  try  to  follow  tracks  in  the 
night ;  better  go  at  it  fresh  in  the  morning." 

"  That  is  my  opinion.  It  is  now  half-past  two ;  when 
will  there  be  light  enough  to  follow  the  track?" 

"Not  before  six  o'clock,  after  breakfast,"  said  the 
landlord;  "but  it's  hardly  worth  while  for  you  to  go  to 
bed  again.  Shall  I  get  some  supper  for  you  all  round  ? 
There's  capital  brandy,  and  rum,  and  bottled  stout — so 
that  you  may  pass  an  hour  pleasantly  before  you  start." 


A  Social  Party.  425 

"Do  so,"  said  the  magistrate;  "and  we  can  talk  jTer 
the  matter  leisurely.  It  will  take  us  half  an  hour  to 
trot  to  the  point  of  the  track  from  which  we  broke  off, 
so  that  we  must  start  at  five  to  be  ready  to  take  advantage 
of  the  first  light." 

Upon  this  we  formed  a  social  party  round  the  table, 
and  discussed  the  likelihood  of  the  fugitives  crossing  the 
Macquarie  Elver  by  the  bridge,  or  by  a  ford,  which  wh.s 
passable,  about  twelve  miles  up  the  stream. 

"Bless  your  heart,"  said  the  jockey,  "that  horse — 
Roderick — that's  his  name,  sir  (to  me),  Roderick  would 
as  easy  swim  the  IMacquarie  as  walk  from  here  to  that 
stable — his  rider  may  go  with  him  anywhere  and  over 
anything  in  nature  I" 

"I  have  reasons  to  think  that  they  would  not  attempt 
to  swim  the  Macquarie,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  so  that 
we  must  make  for  the  ford,  if  we  don't  find  the  trace  of 
him  towards  the  bridge.  But  I  think  he  can't  escape 
us  now,  with  you,  Charley,  to  help  us." 

"  You  know  him,  then?"  said  the  jockey. 

"  We  think  we  do,  but  we  are  not  sure;  but  there  is 
reason  to  believe  that  his  object  is  to  get  over  the  coun- 
try to  Launceston  as  quickly  as  possible." 

"  Then  his  mark  is  to  go  by  the  Jupiter,"  said  the 
sailor ;  "  she  is  to  sail  to-morrow  morning,  my  skipper 
writes  me,  and  that's  why  I'm  wanted  back  in  such  a 
hurry.  I  say,  master,"  said  he  to  the  jockey,  "as  you 
are  so  knowing  about  horses,  couldn't  you  do  something 
to  my  brute  ?  for  I'm  blessed  if  I  can  make  anything 
of  him  ;  he  steers  so  wild,  I  defy  the  best  hand  that 
ever  held  a  tiller  to  keep  him  on  a  wind — one  tack  or 
t'other — and  when  you  let  him  go  free,  he  stands  with 


426  Jockey  Information. 

jis  head  between  his  legs,  and  backs  all  sail,  so  that  he 
gets  starn-way ;  how  I'm  to  get  to  Launceston  on  him 
IS  more  than  I  can  tell !" 

"  I'll  tell  you  how  to  mr.nage  him,"  said  the  jockey; 
"I  know  him  well;  he's  a  Sydney  horse,  and  near 
twenty  years  old,  and  as  cunning  as  a  fox.  He  was  bred 
out  of  a  mare  that  PdcCarthy  reared  at  Parramatta ; 
Captain  Firebrace  brought  him  over  to  Hobart  Town, 
and  then  Parker  bought  him,  and  Weston  had  him  after- 
wards, and  BuUfield  kept  him  as  a  stock-horse,  but  no- 
body could  make  anything  of  him,  and  Bullfield 
swopped  him  with  Spring  for  thirty  ewes  heavy  with 
lamb  ;  and  he  thought  he  had  done  Spring  nicely ;  but 
the  biter  was  bit,  for  the  ewes  were  all  old  'uns,  and  past 
their  time,  and  the  devil  a  lamb  did  they  ever  have 
ao-ain,  for  they  hadn't  got  a  tooth  in  the  heads  of  'em 
all ;  and  then  Spring  exchanged  him  for  a  pair  of  work- 
ing bullocks,  and  of  course  they  ran  into  the  bush  next 
day,  for  they  were  young  ones,  only  put  into  the  yoke 
for  the  swop,  and  it's  supposed  they  are  somewhere 
beyond  the  lakes  towards  the  Western  Coast ;  and  how 
many  hands  old  Slyboots  has  been  in  since  then  is  more 
than  I  can  say,  but  I'll  tell  you  how  to  be  up  with 
him." 

The  receipt  for  a  vicious  horse  was  for  that  time  lost  to 
posterity,  for  the  rapid  clattering  of  hoofs  suddenly  called 
off  the  attention  of  the  jockey,  and  in  half  a  minute  after 
two  horsemen  rode  up  to  the  door  of  the  inn,  whom  we 
immediately  recognised  as  the  ingenious  Sanders  and  the 
phlegmatic  Scroggs. 

"Ha!  Sanders,  my  buck  !"  said  the  jockey,  "are you 
come  to  join  us?  And  Scroggs! — why,  what  brings 
you  so  far  from  home,  old  boy  ?" 


Start  Again.  427 

"We  are  on  a  secret  expedition,"  said  Sanders,  with 
as  much  dignity  as  he  could  assume  on  a  sudden,  with  a 
very  red  face  and  a  very  blue  nose.  ''And  I  see  I  am 
come  to  the  right  place,  taking  off  his  hat  to  the  magis- 
trate, and  entering  the  house.  I  have  been  lucky  enough 
sir,"  he  added,  ''  to  get  horses,  as  you  see,  and  right 
good  ones  they  are." 

''So  they  are,"  chimed  in  the  jo.ckcy;  ''that  roan  is 
as  good  a  horse  as  ever  put  one  leg  before  the  other. 
Mr.  Fallowfield,  of  the  Green  Ponds,  gave  sixty  guineas 
for  him,  and  cheap  too.  That  white  horse,  that  Scroggs 
was  on,  has  been  a  racer  in  his  time ;  and  I've  seen  a 
hundred  and  twenty  guineas,  dollars  down,  given  for 
him  within  these  eight  years;  he  is  getting  aged  now. 
Young  Oakley  gave  two  pair  of  working  bullocks  and  a 
cow  heavy  with  calf  for  him — and  that's  as  good  as  forty 
pounds — the  autumn  before  last;  and  he's  worth  all  the 
money,  for  there's  half  a  dozen  years'  work  in  him  yet. 
I'll  go  and  look  after  them  for  you.  Better  give  'em  a 
mash  of  siftings,  for  horses  are  apt  to  feed  greedy  at 
first,  and  corn  does  'em  no  good,  if  they  arn't  cool  when 
they  eat  it." 

"  You  must  make  haste  with  your  preparations,"  said 
the  magistrate,  "for  it  is  past  three  o'clock,  and  at  five 
we  must  start." 

''It's  pushing  the  horses  rather  too  hard,"  said  the 
jockey,  "but  what's  the  use  of  them  if  they  can't  help 
you  at  a  pinch  ?  Ah  I  if  I  only  had  Roderick  under  me, 
I  should  like  to  see  the  heels  of  the  horse  that  I  ciaildn't 
pass  in  no  time  !" 

At  five  o'clock  we  set  ofi",  the  jockey  leading  the  way. 
The  sailor  thought  it  best  to  make  a  start  at  the  same 


428      The  Sailor's  Awkwardness. 

time,  but  as  his  destination  was  the  high  road,  which  he 
called,  "  keeping  in  the  stream,"  we  did  not  wait  for 
him  to  accomplish  the  difficult  feat  of  getting  aboard  his 
"craft,"  and  we  left  him,  therefore,  with  one  foot  in  the 
stirrup  and  the  other  hopping  on  the  ground  in  chase 
of  his  cranky  steed,  which  performed  an  unceasing  gyra- 
tion in  resistance  to  the  attempt  to  mount  him.  The 
last  words  that  we  heard  of  the  enraged  sailor  were 
*'  D' — ,  that  is,  bless — no,  I  won't  be  balked  this  time 
— I  say,  damn  him  !" 

"  You  followed  'em  to  the  valley  between  the  two 
banks  of  mimosas,  by  a  sugar-loaf  hill,  didn't  you  say?" 
said  the  jockey,  after  we  had  gone  about  four  miles. 
"  Then  this  must  be  near  the  spot  where  you  turned  off. 
Let  us  walk  leisurely,  if  you  please,  sir ;  no  need  to  go 
over  more  ground  than  necessary.  About  here,  was  it  ? 
You  are  right ;  here  are  your  tracks,  see  !  There's  the 
track  of  Mr.  Thornlcy's  horse — he  throws  out  the  right 
fore-leg  as  he  trots,  a  leetle  more  than  the  left;  and  there's 
the  track  of  Roderick.  Look  at  his  stride;  any  one 
may  tell  that  stride  from  a  hundred;  and  there's  the 
print  of  the  jackass  shoe  that  I  was  obliged  to  put  on 
him,  poor  fellow,  for  I  had  no  other  at  hand ;  but  I  little 
thought  anybody  could  be  such  a  brute  as  to  make  him 
gallop  in  it.  You  see  he  don't  like  it,  for  he  just  fa- 
vours that  log  the  Icnst  bit  in  the  world.  No  one  else 
would  observe  it,  but  I  know  his  ways.  Now,  gentle- 
men, if  you  are  of  a  mind  to  push  on,  I'll  engage  to 
keep  on  Roderick's  track.  Pretty  country  this,  for  a 
pack  of  hounds.  What  a  glorious  run  you  may  give  a 
horse  on  Salt-pan  Plains.  There's  nothing  to  stop  you 
one  way  for  twenty  miles." 


Fresh  Tracks.  429 

The  track  now  led  us  over  Blackman's  Bridge. 

"  Oh,  ho  !"  said  the  jockey;  "  I  see  the  rascal  shies  the 
water;  he  prefers  the  bridge;  now,  I  think,  we  shall 
have  him." 

But,  contrary  to  our  expectation,  the  track  led  us  some 
miles  to  the  left,  to  a  ruined  hut,  where  it  seemed  the 
fugitives  had  passed  the  night;  for  there  were  marks  of 
a  fire  having  been  kindled  the  night  before,  and  the 
hearth  still  retained  some  heat. 

''  Stole  away  I"  said  Chaflfem;  "  but  the  form  is  still 
warm,  and  puss  can't  be  far  off.  The  rascal  has  got  the 
start  though,  and  Roderick  is  not  the  horse  to  lose  his 
ground." 

We  left  the  hut,  and  followed  the  track  in  the  direc- 
tion of  Ross  Bridge,  on  the  Macquarie  River;  but  here 
it  seemed  the  fugitives  had  misgivings  of  the  prudence 
of  proceeding  on  the  highway,  for  within  half  a  mile  of 
the  bridge  they  crossed  the  road,  and  made  a  circuit  to 
the  right. 

"They  don't  like  to  chance  the  bridge,"  said  the  con- 
stable. "  Now,  if  their  point  is  Launcestou,  they  must 
either  swim  the  river  or  make  for  the  ford.  There  is 
one  higher  up  the  stream,  but  it's  a  long  round ;  do  you 
know  it,  Charley  ?" 

"Know  it!  ay,  and  many's  the  time  I've  crossed  it; 
and  Roderick  knows  it,  too;  but  they'll  never  go  all 
that  way  round;  they'll  take  to  the  water,  you'll  see, 
when  we  come  to  the  bend." 

But  in  this  the  jockey  was  mistaken,  for  we  passed 
the  bend,  and  the  tracks  continued  to  a  spot  about  half 
a  mile  from  the  ford,  near  which  there  was  a  clump  of 
mimosas  standing  apart  on  the  plain,  and  at  a  short  dis- 


430         Marks  of  the  Natives. 

tance  from  a  forest  of  thickly-growing  trees.  At  this 
place  they  had  evidently  made  a  halt,  for  the  ground 
was  trampled  down  within  a  small  circumscribed  space, 
as  if  they  had  been  hiding  there  for  a  time.  We  did 
not  wait  to  examine  it  further,  but  pushed  on  in  the 
direction  of  the  ford.  But  here  a  sight  met  our  eyes 
that  explained  the  cause  of  the  halt,  and  the  hiding  of 
the  fugitives.  The  quick-eyed  Sanders  was  the  first  to 
detect  the  traces  of  numerous  naked  feet. 

"Pull  up !"  he  cried  out — "pull  up  for  a  minute. 
Look,  sir,  the  natives  have  been  prowling  about  here. 
Look  to  the  right  there.  Don't  press  the  marks — let  us 
see  how  many  of  the  black  fellows  have  been  together." 

We  drew  up  on  the  margin  of  the  tracks  of  the  na- 
tives, which  were  in  the  direction  of  the  ford,  and  it 
seemed  as  if  there  had  been  about  twenty  of  them,  to 
judge  from  the  confused  prints  of  their  naked  feet." 

"  I'll  bet  a  guinea,"  said  Sanders,  "  this  is  what  made 
'em  hide  up  for  awhile  among  those  mimosas.  They 
saw  the  natives  between  them  and  the  ford,  and  they 
feared  to  face  them." 

"  Keep  on,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  their  tracks  lead 
to  the  ford — and  I  think  I  see  some  object  on  the  bank 
of  the  river." 

He  was  right ;  a  few  minutes'  trot  brought  us  to  the 
ford,  and  by  the  side  of  the  stream  was  lying  a  man  in 
a  fustian  dress,  whose  countenance  I  thought  I  remem- 
bered. On  examining  him  more  closely,  I  recognised 
the  face  of  the  man  in  the  yellow  jacket  whom  I  had 
met  on  the  jetty  in  liobart  Town,  and  who  was  one  of 
those  who  attacked  and  overpowered  me  in  the  red- 
house.    In  two  words  I  told  this  to  the  magistrate. 


The  Murdered   Man.  431 

The  poor  wretch  was  still  alive,  but  his  appearance 
told  the  tale  of  his  miserable  fete.  His  skull  was 
pounded  in  by  the  waddies  of  the  natives,  and  his  body 
was  pierced  in  many  places  by  their  thin  and  pointed 
spears. 

"  If  we  could  only  get  him  to  speak  now,"  said  the 
constable,  "he  might  give  us  some  useful  information. 
Scroggs,  where's  your  bottle  ?" 

Upon  this  the  provident  Scroggs  produced  a  pint 
bottle  of  rum — a  sovereign  remedy,  in  his  opinion,  for 
all  disorders. 

"  What's  the  use  of  giving  him  rum,  if  he's  dead  ?" 
remonstrated  Scroggs;  "it's  only  wasting  it  that  way." 

"He's  not  dead,"  said  Sanders,  "  though  it  won't  be 
long  first,  seemingly.  Let  us  try  to  make  him  speak; 
he  may  be  able  to  tell  us  of  the  other  one.  It's  Bill 
Simmons,  one  of  the  biggest  rascals  in  the  whole  colony, 
but  that's  no  matter  now.     Give  us  the  bottle." 

He  raised  up  the  expiring  wretch,  and  Sanders  poured 
down  his  throat  a  portion  of  the  rum,  while  the  magis- 
trate dashed  some  cold  water  from  the  river  over  his 
head  and  face.  For  a  considerable  time  the  man  gave  no 
other  signs  of  life  than  a  faint  breathing,  and  it  was  not 
until  after  the  lapse  of  two  hours,  which  seemed  to  us 
two  ages,  that  he  was  able  to  articulate. 

"  We  are  losing  time  sadly,"  exclaimed  the  impatient 
jockey,  "  and  what  has  become  of  poor  Roderick  all  this 
time?  Entangled,  perhaps,  with  the  reins,  and  his 
head  kept  down,  and  drowned  in  the  river  !  That's 
dreadful !' 

"  Hush  !"  said  the  magistrate,  "  the  man  is  going  to 
Bpeak." 


432  He  gives  Us  News. 

"  They  have  got  the  child,"  murmured  out  the  dying 
man. 

"  Who  have  got  the  child  ?" 

''  The  natives — they — attacked — me  in — the  ford." 

"  And  your  companion,  where  is  he  ?" 

"I  saw  him  swimming  in  the  river — but — in  his 
haste — he  abandoned — the  child — to  save  himself — and 
the  natives  took  the  child — the  Gypsey — the  Gypsey — 
the  Gypsey's  child  ?" 

"  Did  the  natives  kill  the  child  ?"  asked  I,  full  of 
anxious  horror  at  the  probable  fate  of  the  poor  girl. 

"They  —  have  —  killed  —  me.  Their  waddies — my 
head — spears — child carried  off. " 

"  How  long  ago  is  it,"  asked  the  magistrate,  "since 
they  attacked  you  ?" 

"  I  don't  know — it — was — just — at — daybreak.  I — 
didn't — like  to  pass  the  bridge — so — I  made  for  the 
ford — and  the  natives — attacked  us — and  they  have 
taken  the — child.  .  .  ." 

"  What's  o'clock  ?"  asked  Sanders. 

"  Half  past  ten,"  said  I. 

"Then  the  natives  have  got  the  start  of  us  by  about 
four  hours  and  a  half,"  resumed  the  constable ;  "  and  if 
they  have  taken  to  the  hills,  it  will  be  a  difficult  job  to 
follow  them  on  horseback." 

"We  can  easily  track  them  in  the  snow,"  observed  the 
magistrate. 

"While  the  snow  lasts,"  replied  the  constable ;  "  but, 
]jy  the  look  of  ]?cn  Lomond,  we  shall  have  a  change  of 
weather,  and  there's  a  northerly  wind  this  morning,  and 
that,  with  the  sun,  will  soon  melt  this  snow.  Following 
the  natives   in  the   bush  is  no  easy  matter.     A  white 


M  U  S  Q  U  E  E  T  O    WITH    THE    NATIVES.      433 

man  might  as  well  tiy  to  track  a  bird  as  a  native  in  the 
bush !" 

''  I  shall  go  after  them,"  said  the  magistrate;  "what 
do  you  say,  Thornley — shall  we  leave  this  little  girl  to 
the  mercy  of  the  savages  ?" 

"  I'm  ready  to  go  with  you,"  said  I,  "  but  let  us  go 
prepared ;  this  is  a  bad  time  of  the  year  for  bushing  it. 
Is  there  no  place  near  here,  Sanders,  where  we  could 
borrow  some  kangaroo-rugs,  and  get  a  supply  of  provi- 
sions?" 

"  I  have  it !"  said  Sanders;  "Mark's  sheep-run  is  not 
more  than  two  miles  from  the  ford,  and  if  he  will  let  one 
of  his  shepherds.  Black  Tom,  go  with  us — he's  a  Syd- 
ney native — we'll  set  a  black  fellow  to  hunt  black  fel- 
lows, and  come  over  them  that  way." 

"Come  on,  then,"  said  the  magistrate,  "and  lose  no 
time.  I  will  go  with  you  to  remove  any  objection.  Stay! 
the  dying  man  is  going  to  speak  again.  I  think  he  un- 
derstood what  we  were  saying.  What  is  it,  my  man  ?" 
he  added,  in  a  soothing  tone  to  the  dying  man  ;  "  what 
have  you  got  to  say  ?" 

"  Mus  —  quee  -  -  to  !"  said  the  man,  with  his  last 
breath. 

"Musqueeto!"  said  Sanders,  "then  there's  no  time 
to  be  lost ;  that's  the  crudest  savage  that  ever  tormented 
a  colony  ;  he  kills  for  killing  sake,  without  reason." 

"  I  have  had  a  taste  of  him,"  said  the  magistrate. 

"  And  so  have  I,"  said  I. 

"  There's  no  time  to  be  lost,  if  we  are  to  save  the 
child." 

The  magistrate,  guided  by  Sanders,  immediately  gal- 
loped off;  and  in  less  time  than  we  expected,  they  re- 
28 


434  The  Girl  Carried  off  by  Natives. 

turned  at  a  brisk  pace,  laden  with  kangaroo-rugs,  and 
various  necessaries  for  a  bush  expedition,  and  followed 
by  Tom,  a  fine  tali  native  of  the  continental  island  of 
Australia,  dressed  with  much  neatness,  in  a  cloth  jacket 
and  trousers  of  good  texture;  the  civilized  natives  soon 
catching  the  colonial  predilection  for  cloth  of  a  superior 
quality. 

''And  what's  to  become  of  me  V  said  the  disconsolate 
jockey ;  ''  and  what  has  become  of  Roderick  ?  I  say, 
friend,  didn't  you  say  your  rascally  companion  crossed 
the  ford  ?  He's  as  dead  as  a  door  nail !  There's  no 
getting  any  more  out  of  him;  it  serves  him  right  for 
making  off  with  poor  Roderick  !  I  never  knew  a  horse- 
stealer to  come  to  a  good  end  !  But  I'll  be  after  him  ! 
Good  day,  gentlemen  ;  I  wish  you  luck.  Take  care  of 
your  horses,  and  let  them  take  their  time  up  those  terri- 
ble hills.     I'll  go  after  Roderick  !" 

And  so  saying,  the  jockey  plunged  his  horse  into  the 
stream,  and  we  turned  our  attention  to  the  object  of  our 
expedition. 

"  Will  not  the  native,  being  on  foot,  retard  us?" 
inquired  I;  "he  can  never  keep  up  with  our  horses." 

"  Never  fear,"  said  Sanders;  "  if  our  horses  can  keep 
up  with  him  we  shall  do  very  well.  Now,  Tom,  my  boy, 
are  you  ready?" 

Tom  nodded  his  head. 

"  Which  way  are  you  going  to  take  us  ?"  Tom  looked 
at  the  tracks,  among  which  the  prints  of  tiny  feet  were 
plainly  discernible,  and  pointed  to  the  hills. 

"Now,"  said  the  magistrate,  "for  another  adven- 
ture. I  never  had  a  hunt  after  natives  before.  Not 
the  best  of  weather  for  lying  out  at  night's; — but  it 


We  Pursue  Them.  435 

would  never  do  to  leave  that  little  girl  to  bo  butchered  by 
Musqueeto  I" 

We  moved  on  at  a  good  pace,  Tom,  with  his  long  legs, 
keeping  our  horses  just  beyond  a  quick  walk,  and  wo 
were  soon  buried  in  the  deep  recesses  of  the  woods. 


Winter  in  Van  Diemen's  Land — The  Pursuit  of  the  Blacli  Fellows 
— Native  Habitations — News  of  the  Child. 

The  dense  mass  of  spreading  branches,  with  their  win- 
ter leaves  of  sombre  green,  which  formed  a  canopy  high 
above  our  heads,  had  allowed  but  little  snow  to  fall  on 
the  forest  ground ;  but  there  were  ample  signs  of  the 
natives  to  enable  the  sagacious  Sydney  black  to  guide  us 
through  the  intricacies  of  the  tall  straight  stems  of  the 
stringy -bark  trees,  with  their  ragged,  shreddy  coats, 
without  hesitation.  Ever  and  anon  he  would  turn  round 
to  us,  without  discontinuing  his  course,  and  displaying, 
with  a  self-satisfied  grin,  his  formidable  rows  of  ivory 
teeth,  he  would  point  to  the  track,  and  seek,  with  his 
piercing  and  restless  black  eyes,  deep  set  in  his  woolly 
head,  for  our  approbation  of  his  sagacity. 

It  occupied  us  nearly  two  hours  to  pass  through  the 
forest,  and  we  then  emerged  into  an  ample  plain  nearly 
clear  of  trees,  resembling  a  vast  park.  The  noonday  sun 
had  melted  nearly  all  the  snow,  and  it  was  only  here  and 
there,  under  the  shade  of  some  gigantic  gum-tree,  or 
umbrageous  mimosa,  that  any  signs  of  it  wore  visible. 
We  were  glad  to  get  rid  of  the  snow,  as,  under  the  gui- 
dance of  the  black,  we  had  no  fear  of  losing  the  tracks 
of  the  natives,  and  we  pushed  on  without  stopping  for 
nearly  twenty  miles,  in  a  south-easterly  direction,  over  a 

(13G) 


Winter  in   Australia.  437 

fine-country  of  undulating  hill  and  plain,  tillwc  came  to 
the  foot  of  a  tier  of  low  hills,  on  which  were  scattered  a 
few  of  the  trees  of  the  she  oak.  These  trees  present  a 
scraggy  appearance  to  the  eye,  but  their  wood  is  much 
prized  as  fuel,  from  its  pleasing  fragrance  and  good  qua- 
lities for  burning.  It  is  not  easy  to  get  a  plank  from 
these  trees  of  more  than  six  or  eight  inches  in  width,  but, 
when  polished,  it  is  admirably  adapted  for  ornamental 
furniture.  Here  we  made  a  pause  to  rest  our  horses, 
which  we  tethered  out  by  the  hide  ropes,  which  we  car- 
ried with  us  on  the  front  of  our  saddles,  giving  them  the 
range  of  a  circle  of  about  eighty  feet  in  diameter,  to  feed 
on  the  native  grass,  shifting  them  occasionally  as  their 
food  grew  scanty.  The  constables  kindled  a  fire,  and 
proceeded  with  the  usual  arrangements  for  a  bush  meal. 
They  put  a  handful  of  black  tea  into  the  kettle,  which 
Scroggs  bore  in  his  portion  of  the  luggage,  and  set  it  on 
to  boil — tea  forming  the  favourite  beverage  of  settlers  of 
every  degree  in  their  bush  expeditions.  The  dexterous 
black,  who  carried  a  long-shanked,  narrow  axe,  quickly 
sliced  from  an  adjacent  gum-tree  some  pieces  of  bark, 
which  formed  extempore  plates  and  dishes,  and  some 
steaks  of  young  beef  being  duly  broiled,  aided  by  one  of 
the  dampers,  which  formed  part  of  our  provisions,  we 
made,  with  the  relish  of  hunger,  a  satisfactory  repast. 
The  constables  then  got  up  a  second  edition  of  the  feast, 
with  some  additional  supplies,  for  Black  Tom,  not  liking 
to  remain  idle  during  our  banquet,  had  contrived  to  catch 
three  kangaroo-rats  and  a  bandicoot,  which  he  disem- 
bowelled with  much  delicacy,  and  threw  them  in  their 
furry  coats  on  some  clear  embers  of  the  fire.  Scroggs 
produced  from  the  recesses  of  a  mysterious  garment  a 


438       Coldness  of  the  Nights. 

bottle  of  rum,  but  it  was  unanimously  decided  that  this 
luxury  should  be  reserved  as  a  medicine  for  special  occa- 
sions.    Much  to  the  disappointment  of  the  thirsty  indi- 
vidual, therefore,  the  cork  remained  undrawn,  and  the 
disconsolate  Scroggs  was  obliged  to  solace  himself  with  a 
pannikin  of  hot  tea  from  the  boiling  kettle.     Our  rough 
repast  ended,  we  proceeded  on  our  way,  till  the  sinking  of 
the  sun  behind  the  snow-topped  mountains  to  the  west, 
warned  us  to  turn  our  attention  to  the  means  of  passing 
the  night ;  for  the  nights  in  the  winter  season  in  Van 
Diemen's  Land  are  too  cold  to  allow  of  their  being  passed 
with  impunity  in  the  open  air.     As  we  felt  the  fullest 
confidence  of  coming  up  with  the  natives,  we  did  not  push 
our  horses  to  the  extreme,  for  we  knew  that  Musqueeto 
and  his  mob  would  not  travel  many  days  without  making 
a  stop  in  some  locality  favourable  for  the  collection  of 
gum,  and  the  resort  of  opossums.     We  had  but  one  axe 
amonsr  us,  but  there  were  more  than  one  who  knew  well 
how  to  use  it,  the  cleverest  of  whom  was  the  Sydney 
black ;  so  that,  in  a  short  time,  they  managed  to  erect 
two  bush-huts  well  covered  in  with  heavy  branches.    The 
opening  of  the  huts   being  next  to  the  fire,  which  was 
kept  up  all  night,  we  contrived,  with  the  aid  of  our 
warm  kangaroo-rugs,  to  pass  the  night  without  incon- 
venience. 

Towards  the  early  morning,  the  air  became  frosty,  and 
the  next  day,  under  a  clear  sky  and  a  brilliant  sun,  we 
continued  our  pursuit  of  the  natives.  At  noon  the  air 
became  mild  and  warm,  and  if  it  had  not  been  for  our 
apprehensions  of  the  calamitous  fate  of  the  child  to  whose 
rescue  we  were  hastening,  we  should  have  enjoyed  the 
beautiful   scenery   of   the  almost   unexplored   country 


Several  Days  Elapse.  439 

tlirough  wliicli  we  travelled ;  but  a  second  day  and  night 
having  passed  without  coming  up  with  the  natives,  our 
uneasiness  increased  to  a  pitch  of  painful  anxiety.  We 
could  discover  no  trace  of  the  little  foot,  nor  indeed  could 
our  less  acute  sense  of  sight  detect  any  marks  of  the 
retiring  natives,  although,  to  the  black's  stronger  and  more 
sensitive  organs,  the  marks  were  so  plain  as  to  cause  hira 
no  apparent  trouble  to  pursue.  We  consoled  ourselves, 
however,  with  the  reflection,  that  the  absence  of  any  mark 
.  of  the  child's  foot  which  Tom  could  not  trace,  might  be 
accounted  for  by  her  having  been  carried  in  the  arms  of 
the  natives,  though  what  could  be  their  object,  or  the 
object  of  Musqueeto  in  bearing  her  away,  wc  were  at  a 
loss  to  conjecture,  and  we  feared  the  worst. 

With  these  doubts  and  fears,  we  passed  an  uneasy 
night;  the  more  so  as  our  provisions  being  nearly  ex- 
hausted, we  could  not  keep  up  the  animal  strength  to 
counteract  the  depression  of  the  spirits.  Under  cir- 
cumstances so  favourable  for  the  opening  of  the  grog- 
bottle,  the  longing  Scroggs  made  several  insinuating  at- 
tempts to  get  our  assent  to  that  measure,  but  it  was 
steadily  resisted,  and  with  a  stoicism  on  the  part  of  his 
reflecting  coadjutor  which  I  particularly  admired. 

"Cold  work  this!"  said  Scroggs  to  Sanders;  ^' and 
cold  water  is  poor  stuff  to  put  heart  into  a  man.  A  fire 
is  very  well  to  warm  the  outside,  but  the  inside  is  the 
l^lace  to  keep  up  the  heat ;  then  it  spreads  all  over  one 
in  a  glow  !  It's  surprising  how  small  a  quantity  of  spi- 
rit— a  single  glass  or  so — I've  often  tried  it — will  warm 
a  man's  whole  body,  to  the  very  tips  of  one's  fingers  !" 
"  To  the  tip  of  your  nose,  you  ought  to  say,  old  buck," 
rejoined  his  mate,  "for  you  have  put  that  sponge  of 


440  We   GrET  Depressed. 

yours  into  such  a  glow  some  time,  that  it  has  never  got 
cool  again." 

"None  of  your  nonsense; — it's  all  owing  to  smoking 
out  of  a  short  pipe ;  I  went  to  sleep  with  it  one  night  in 
my  mouth,  and  I  slept  so  sound,  though  I  had  drunk 
nothing  to  speak  of,  that  the  end  of  my  nose  got  briled 
on  the  bowl  of  the  pipe  before  I  woke  up." 

"  I  wish  you  had  thought  to  bring  two  bottles,  instead 
of  one,"  said  Sanders,  "  then  you  might  have  soaked  your 
nose  in  one  and  kept  the  other.  But  you  don't  know 
what  may  happen  in  the  bush,  and  a  sup  of  rum  may 
save  a  man's  life.     Better  keep  it  till  it's  wanted." 

"  But  it  is  wanted,"  persisted  the  persevering  Scroggs; 
"  I  declare  I  feel  so  queer  I  don't  know  what  to  make  of 
it ;  and  that  bit  of  opossum  that  I  was  fool  enough  to  eat 
makes  me  smell  all  turpentine.  What  harm  could  it  do," 
he  added,  in  a  melancholy  tone,  "  if  I  took  only  the  least 
sip  in  the  world — just  a  taste — only  a  smell  at  the 
bottle  ?" 

But  Sanders  was  firm,  and  as  Scroggs  stood  too  much 
in  awe  of  the  magistrate  to  venture  on  so  flagrant  a 
breach  of  duty  as  a  burglary  on  the  rum-bottle,  he  be- 
took himself  sadly  to  bed,  and  covering  himself  up  in  his 
kangaroo-rug,  after  a  few  dolorous  moanings,  the  sounds 
which  proceeded  from  his  fiery  nose  proclaimed  that  he 
■was  sound  asleep. 

The  next  morning  found  us  much  less  fresh  than  the 
preceding  one,  and  no  one  seemed  inclined  for  conversa- 
tion, our  spirits  being  damped  by  the  unsuccessful  pur- 
suit, and  by  the  contemplation  of  the  uncertain  distance 
to  which  we  might  be  led  in  our  chase,  and  of  the  un- 
certain time  which  might  be  consumed  in  it.     We  had 


Discover   the   Natives.  441 

bivouacked  at  the  base  of  a  tier  of  hills,  and  it  was  not 
without  anxiety  that  we  shared  the  remainder  of  our 
provisions,  and  prepared  for  the  steep  ascent  before  us. 

We  had  not  proceeded  far,  however,  when,  on  some 
moist  ground  beneath  a  spring,  which  trickled  down  the 
hill,  Black  Tom  pointed  out  to  us  the  fresh  mark  of  a 
niitive  foot.  We  were  leading  our  horses  up  the  ascent, 
and  it  was  with  lively  curiosity  that  we  regarded  the 
sign  of  the  probable  propinquity  of  the  natives.  We 
immediately  looked  to  our  arms,  wiped  our  flints,  re- 
newed our  primings,  and  examined  our  barrels,  to  see 
that  the  charges  had  not  become  loosened  in  the  journey. 
The  prospect  of  danger  spread  animation  among  the  party, 
mixed  with  some  anxiety,  for  we  had  by  this  time  pene- 
trated into  a  part  of  the  country  never,  perhaps,  trodden 
before  by  a  white  man's  foot,  and  far  removed  from  all 
assistance.  We  advanced,  therefore,  with  great  precau- 
tion till  we  got  close  to  the  summit  of  the  hill,  when  the 
magistrate  directed  us  to  stand  still,  and  motioned  tho 
black  to  reconnoitre. 

Tom  advanced  cautiously  and  silently  upwards,  crawl- 
ing on  his  belly,  and  winding  his  way  like  a  snake  over 
the  tufts  of  grass,  till  he  was  enabled  to  project  his 
black  poll — hardly  to  be  distinguished  from  the  rough 
logs  of  charred  timber  that  lay  about  over  the  ridge  of  the 
hill.  For  some  seconds  he  remained  motionless,  and 
then  withdrawing  himself  by  imperceptible  degrees  from 
liis  place  of  observation,  he  communicated  to  us  the  re- 
sult of  his  discovery. 

"  Bkck  fellows  in  bottom,"  said  Tom,  softly;  "  Mus- 
(juccto  with  'cm." 

'•  What  are  they  doing  ?"  asked  the  constable. 


442  We  Reconnoitee. 

"  Make  fire — and  eat." 

"  Is  the  piccaninny  with  them  ?"  said  I. 

"  Can't  see.  Go  behind  trees,  there,"  continued  Ton:, 
pointing  to  the  right,  "  then  you  see  all." 

On  the  right  was  a  clump  of  bushes,  to  which  we  bent 
our  steps. 

Leaving  our  horses  under  the  charge  of  the  constables, 
we  edged  round  the  declivity  of  the  hill  and  crept  up  to  the 
top,  where  we  stationed  ourselves  behind  the  bushes. 
From  this  position  we  observed  the  natives  in  the  hollow 
below.  They  had  evidently  arrived  at  a  spot  at  which 
they  proposed  to  sojourn  for  a  while,  for  they  had  raised 
up  in  two  or  three  places,  and  with  more  than  usual 
care,  break-winds  formed  of  branches  of  trees,  and  lined 
with  wide  strips  of  bark.  These  rude  protections  from 
the  wind  were  about  four  feet  high,  and  we  remarked 
that  one  apart  from  the  rest  had  the  distinction  of  an 
attempt  at  a  roof,  but  of  dimensions  not  more  than  suf- 
ficient to  contain  a  single  person.  Large  fires  were 
lighted  before  the  break-winds,  at  which  some  of  the  na- 
tives reclined ;  others  were  standing  listlessly  here  and 
there,  and  some  of  the  women  were  engaged  in  tending 
their  children.  Almost  the  whole  party  was  naked ; 
but  one  man,  whom  by  his  stature  and  bearing  we  re- 
cognised as  Musqueeto,  was  distinguished  by  a  black 
hat,  with  waistcoat  and  trousers,  and  one  or  two  of  the 
women  had  something  which  looked  like  old  and  dirty 
blankets  thrown  over  their  shoulders.  We  remained 
for  some  time  watching  them  from  our  hiding-place,  but 
we  could  observe  no  signs  of  the  child  whom  we  had 
come  so  far  to  rescue ;  and  wc  hud  sad  misgivings  of  her 
safety.     Having  made  all  the  observations  in  our  power, 


■'4^:' 


THS    NATIVES    CAHRYrNG    OFF    THE    OIPSTS    DAa-iHrER. 


ARE  THE  Natives  Cannibals?  443 

■we  retreated  back  to  the  brow  of  the  hill,  and  consulted 
together  as  tcthe  best  course  to  pursue. 

"  If  you  would  be  pleased  to  take  my  advice,  sir," 
said  Sanders,  ''  I  would  wait  till  night,  when  the  natives 
are  afraid  to  move  about,  and  then,  by  advancing  two 
together,  we  might  take  them  by  surprise,  and  the  first 
thing  would  be  to  shoot  down  Musqueeto,  and  the  men 
of  the  party,  and  then  if  they  run  away  with  the  child — 
that  is,  if  they  haven't  murdered  it  already,  which  I  think 
most  likely — we  can  pursue  them  with  our  horses,  for 
they're  terribly  afraid  of  a  horse ;  they  think  it  bites, 
and  fights  with  its  fore-legs." 

"  I  confess,"  said  the  magistrate,  "  I  am  very  much 
disappointed  not  to  see  the  little  girl ;  our  object  is  to 
release  her,  not  to  slaughter  these  naked  savages.  Did 
you  ever  know  them  to  eat  a  white  person  ?  Let  us 
find  out  from  Tom  ;  do  you  speak  to  him,  Sanders ;  he 
knows  you,  and  would  tell  you  perhaps  more  freely  than 
lis." 

"  Tom,"  said  Sanders,  "  black  fellow  cat  white  picca- 
ninny ?" 

Tom  looked  suspiciously  at  the  constable  with  his 
deep-set,  restless  eyes,  one  of  the  characteristics  of  the 
natives  of  Australia,  and  seemed  unwilling  to  reply ;  for 
the  Sydney  blacks,  as  well  as  the  few  who  have  commu- 
nication with  the  settlements  of  Van  Diemen's  Land, 
are  well  aware  of  the  horror  of  the  whites  at  the  prac- 
tice of  eating  human  flesh. 

"Tom  never  eat  man,"  said  Sanders,  coaxingly, 
"no — never;  but  bad  black  fellow  eat  man,  and  eat 
piccaninny,  sometimes  ?" 

"Bad   black    fellow   eat  man,   sometimes,"    replied 


444         Black  Tom's  Testimony. 

Tom,  "  wliile  he  very  angry,  and  fight; — me  never  eat 
man." 

"No,  not  you;  but  black  man  eat  white  man,  some- 
times ?" 

"  Yees." 

"And  eat  white  piccaninny,  sometimes;  bad  black 
fellow?" 

"  Yees— bad  black  fellow." 

"  The  nasty  inhuman  savages !"  exclaimed  Scroggs, 
who  was  within  hearing,  holding  the  horses.  "To 
think  of  that  poor  little  gal  being  eat  by  those  black 
devils,  just  as  if  she  was  mutton  or  beef !  Here,  Sanders, 
come  and  put  your  hand  in  my  pocket,  and  take  out  tha 
bottle  of  rum ; — take  it,  I  say  !  I,  for  one,  will  give  it 
up,  and  let  the  natives  have  it  for  the  child.  I  should 
like  just  to  have  one  sup  of  it  before  it  goes;  but  never 
mind,  I'll  give  it  all,  rather  than  the  child  should  be  cat 
up  by  those  black  rascals  !" 

"  Well  done,  Scroggs,"  said  the  magistrate;  "  depend 
upon  it  this  generous  instance  of  self-denial  shall  not  be 
forgotten,  for  I  know  the  effort  which  it  must  have  c^sfc 
you ;  but  I  think  we  can  manage  without  putting  your 
virtue  to  so  severe  a  trial.  Tom,"  said  he  to  our  guide, 
"will  you  go  and  try  if  you  can  see  a  little  white  pic- 
caninny among  the  black  fellows  ?  Piccaninny  so  high," 
describing  the  height  of  a  child  of  six  or  seven  years  of 

age- 
Tom  understood  what  was  said  to  him  in  English  muck 
more  easily  than  he  could  find  words  to  reply.     He  com- 
prehended the  magistrate  in  a  moment,  and  looking  on 
the  ground  for  a  while  in  a  thoughtful  attitude, — 
"  Me  go,"  said  he. 


Tom   makes  an  Explanation.     445 

Without  further  talk,  for  the  natives  are  remarkably 
taciturn  and  sententious  among  themselves,  as  well  as 
among  the  whites,  Tom  proceeded  to  strip  himself  of  the 
eneumbranee  of  his  clothes,  even  to  his  shoes  and  stock- 
ings, and  displayed  himself  in  the  natural  undisguise  of 
our  great  progenitor,  Adam,  about  whose  colour  tliere  is, 
among  many  of  the  nations  of  the  eartli,  a  difierence  of 
opinion;  but  as  the  subject  is  foreign  to  the  nature  of 
these  humble  memoirs,  I  shall  not  enter  into  that  vexa- 
tious question.  The  disencumbered  Tom  formed  his  plan 
on  the  instant,  and  taking  a  wide  circuit  to  the  left,  he 
was  soon  lost  to  view,  leaving  us  in  a  state  of  anxious 
and  nervous  expectation. 

After  the  lapse  of  an  hour  he  returned,  and  in  the 
cold  apathetic  manner  of  the  natives,  he  communicated 
his  information  with  his  usual  sententious  brevity  : — 

"  White  piccaninny  with  black  fellows." 

'*  That's  capital,"  said  the  magistrate;  "  the  poor  little 
thing  is  alive,  at  any  rate.     How  does  she  look,  Tom  ?" 

But  Tom  did  not  understand  this  question,  and  seeing 
that  an  answer  was  expected,  he  replied, — 

"  Piccaninny  in  little  house," — describing  by  gesture 
the  single  break-wind  which  we  had  observed  from  be- 
hind the  bushes. 

"  What  are  they  going  to  do  with  the  piccaninny  ?" 
said  I. 

''  Eat  her,  I'll  be  bound,"  said  Scroggs;  "  that's  what 
1  hey  are  going  to  do  with  her;  and  they  are  fattening 
her  up  in  that  pen  as  we  do  a  lamb,  till  she's  in  good 
condition.  The  black  villains  !  Let  us  march  right  at 
'em  and  shoot  'em  down,  every  one.     I'm  ready  for  it !" 

"  There  is  something  in  this,"  observed  the  magistrate, 


448  Preparations. 

"  wbicli  I  cannot  understand.  It  is  difficult  sometimes 
to  penetrate  into  the  motives  of  savages  ;  but  as  they  seem 
at  present  to  be  in  a  peaceful  humour,  I  think  our  best 
plan  is  to  send  on  Tom  a  little  in  advance  to  parley  with 
them,  and  to  assure  them  that  we  have  no  hostile  inten- 
tions. We  can  follow  immediately  behind  him  on  horse- 
back, with  our  arms  ready,  in  case  of  their  showing 
fight  5  but  as  we  shall  take  them  by  surprise,  I  think  it 
very  likely  that  they  will  not  attempt  any  resistance. 
You  all  know  that  it  is  the  particular  desire  of  the  Colo- 
nial Government,  which  is  conformable,  indeed,  with 
sound  policy  and  with  humanity,  never  to  commit  an  ag- 
gression on  the  natives  uselessly  and  without  the  most 
pressing  necessity;  but  on  all  occasions  to  treat  them 
with  benevolence  and  tenderness,  and  to  endeavour  to 
win  them  over  by  acts  of  kindness,  instead  of  alienating 
them  by  the  wanton  or  thoughtless  exercise  of  superior 
power." 

"If  you  please,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  "  Musqueeto  has 
committed  more  than  one  murder,  and  he's  a  Sydney 
black,  and  ought  to  know  better.  We  have  orders  from 
Camp  to  endeavour  to  take  him  if  we  should  have  the 
opportunity." 

"We  shall  act  according  to  circumstances,"  replied 
the  magistrate.  "  At  present,  our  object  is  to  rescue  the 
child  from  the  clutches  of  the  savages ;  and,  in  doing 
that,  we  must  endeavour  to  avoid  shedding  blood." 

I  agreed  with  the  magistrate  in  the  propriety  of  his 
mode  of  action,  and  although  I  had  a  strong  presenti- 
ment that  there  would  be  a  murderous  conflict,  I  relied 
on  the  superiority  of  our  arms  and  our  horses,  and  had 
little  doubt  of  the  result. 


Approach   the  Natives.        447 

"We  descended  the  hill,  therefore,  and  forming  our- 
selves into  the  order  kid  down  by  our  leader,  we  moved 
round  the  hill  to  the  right,  that  we  might  reach  the 
level  ground  before  wo  should  be  perceived  by  the  na- 
tives, and,  advancing  at  a  moderate  pace,  we  soon  found 
ourselves  in  front  of  their  curious  habitations 


A  Native  Encampment — Conference  with  Musqueeto — A  Savage  has 
a  Soul — The  lost  Child  recovered — How  to  catch  an  Opossum — A 
Kangaroo  hunt  by  the  Xatives — The  Apparition  of  Spears  and 
Waddies  excites  disagreeable  suspicions. 

The  Sydney  black  preceded  us  about  twenty  yards  in 
advance,  and  as  soon  as  he  arrived  within  easy  speaking 
distance  of  the  natives,  we  pulled  up,  and  with  much 
anxiety  waited  for  the  issue  of  his  conference.  He  had 
previously  resumed  his  clothes,  but  it  was  easy  for  the 
natives  to  perceive  by  his  colour  and  his  features  that  he 
was  allied  to  their  general  race.  To  our  extreme  sur- 
prise— although  the  aborigines  of  Van  Diemen's  Land 
have  a  strong  antipathy  to  the  natives  of  the  continental 
island — our  messenger  was  allowed  to  approach  their 
fires  without  exciting  the  slightest  visible  sensation. 
Their  simulated  unconcern  might  have  been  produced, 
perhaps,  by  the  sight  of  our  party  on  horseback ;  but  the 
strangeness  of  this  unexpected  apathy,  on  the  part  of 
Musqueeto  and  his  companions,  made  us  fear  some 
treachery,  and  we  looked  round  to  try  if  we  could  per- 
ceive any  appearance  of  an  ambuscade;  but  we  could 
detect  nothing  to  excite  suspicion.  I  have  often  had 
occasion  to  observe  the  dull,  listless,  and  almost  idiotic 
appearance  of  the  natives  of  Van  Diemen's  Land,  when 
not  excited  by  hunger  or  some  passionate  desire.  It  has 
struck  me  that  in  this  respect  they  much  resemble  the 
(448) 


A  Native  Encampment.  449 

unthinking  beasts  of  the  fields,  so  inanimate  and  log-like 
in  their  usual  manner.  The  women  will  sometimes 
chatter  a  little,  for  it  seems  nature  makes  them  all  alike 
as  to  that  matter,  but  the  men  have  the  most  reserved 
and  taciturn  habit  of  any  race  of  savages  that  I  have 
known  or  read  of.  The  strange  contrast  of  their  silence 
and  immobility,  with  the  yells  and  wildness  for  which 
we  were  prepared,  filled  us  with  a  vague  sort  of  super- 
stitious fear,  which  was  heightened  by  the  chilly 
stillness  of  the  vast  wilderness  in  which  we  were  now 
enclosed. 

In  the  mean  time  a  monosyllabic  ''corrobara"  had 
taken  place  between  our  guide  and  the  chief  of  the  sable 
community,  the  meaning  of  which  Tom  concentrated  in 
the  following  brief  communication  : — 

"  Musqueeto  say,  you  come." 

"  Why,  what  is  the  meaning  of  this  ?"  said  the  magis- 
trate. "  They  don't  show  any  signs  of  fear,  nor  do  they 
look  as  if  they  thought  of  fighting !  Is  there  some  strat- 
agem in  this  ?  what  do  you  think  of  it,  Thornley  ?" 

"  Upon  my  word,"  I  replied,  "  this  takes  me  so  much  by 
surprise,  I  don't  know  what  to  think  of  it.  Sanders, 
you  know  their  ways,  do  you  see  any  of  their  waddies 
or  spears  about  ?" 

"  One  can  never  tell,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  "what  those 
treacherous  savages  are  at ;  they're  always  hatching  some 
deviltry  or  other.  You  see,  sir,  I  take  it,  we  have  come 
on  one  of  their  places  for  encamping,  if  you  can  call 
those  bits  of  break-winds  camps.  But  Musqueeto  can 
be  civil  enough,  sometimes.  Scroggs,  you've  often  come 
across  Musqueeto,  what  is  he  after  now  ?" 

"  He's  always  after  some  wickedness/'  responded 
29 


450  Precautions  Against  Treachery. 

Scroggs  !  "  but  I  tliink  the  natives  are  going  to  have  a 
feast.  Don't  you  see  that  string  of  opossums  yonder,  by 
the  blue  gum-tree  ?  aud  there's  something  hanging  up 
inside  the  bushes ; — the  Lord  have  mercy  on  us,  it  must 
be  the  child  I  and  the  black  devils  are  going  to  cook  it 
for  their  dinner !" 

"  The  child  !"  exclaimed  the  magistrate;  "  no,  impos- 
siblfe ! — Tom  saw  the  child  alive  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
ago !  Go,  Tom,  ask  Musqueeto  if  he  has  got  the  white 
man's  piccaninny." 

Tom  made  the  inquiry,  accordingly,  and  presently  re- 
turned with  a  reply. 

"Musqueeto  say,  white  man  kill  piccaninny;  Mus- 
queeto kill  white  man.  Piccaninny  in  piccaninny  house 
—there." 

''This  is  very  extraordinary,"  said  the  magistrate; 
"the  most  extraordinary  thing  that  has  occurred  to  me 
in  all  my  adventures  in  the  colony.  What  can  be 
Musqueeto's  object  in  this  ?  However,  as  they  seem 
quietly  disposed,  let  us  advance  close  to  them,  and  try 
to  get  possession  of  the  poor  child  by  peaceable  means." 
"  Better  let  two  of  us  stand  on  guard,  in  case  of  any 
attack,"  suggested  the  constable ;  "  no  need,  sir,  for  us 
all  to  be  sacrificed." 

"  That's  a  very  prudent  precaution,  Sanders ;  do  you 
and  Scroggs  remain  here  in  charge  of  the  horses,  and  I 
and  Mr.  Thornley  will  go  to  them  on  foot — that  is,  if 
Mr.  Thornley  has  no  objection." 

''None  in  the  least,"  said  I;  "the  best  way  with 
savages,  and  all  animals  in  general,  is  to  show  that  you 
have  no  fear  of  them." 

"  Better  take  my  bottle  of  rum,"  suggested  Scroggs, 


The  Savage  in  His  Lair.  451 

in  the  exuberance  of  his  generosity  ;  ''  let  Mu.~quceto 
have  a  sup  at  it,  and  perhaps  that  will  put  him  in  good 
humour." 

''No,  no,"  said  the  magistrate,  "keep  the  rum  till 
we  want  it.  A  savage  is  awkward  enough  to  deal  with 
when  he  is  sober,  but,  with  a  little  rum  in  him  he  is 
worse  than  a  madman.  Now,  Thornley,  let  us  go  among 
them  boldly." 

Accordingly  we  went  up  to  Musqueeto,  who  was  stand- 
ing by  one  of  the  fires  in  front  of  the  little  wigwam  in 
which  we  had  been  given  to  understand  the  little  girl 
of  whom  we  were  in  search,  was  secreted.  He  had,  I 
thought,  the  same  stupid  and  sullen  look  which  I  had 
remarked  on  other  occasions,  as  he  stood  in  the  listless 
and  dozing  attitude  which  was  usual  with  him  when  not 
engaged  in  any  hunting  or  predatory  expedition.  A 
close  investigation,  however,  might  detect  in  his  half-  » 
shut,  but  ever  restless  eyes,  a  watchfulness  that  allowed 
nothing  to  escape  his  observation.  I  confess  it  was  not 
without  a  little  nervous  apprehension,  and  some  slight 
bumping  in  the  region  of  my  leftside,  that  I  approached 
the  formidable  savage  in  his  lair.  He  raised  up  his  ^ 
eyes  and  glanced  at  us,  but  gave  no  sign  of  recognition, 
or  of  being  affected  by  our  presence. 

We  remained  for  a  brief  space  in  this  unpleasant  posi- 
tion, with  the  awkward  feeling  of  having  intruded  on  a 
gentleman's  privacy  without  an  invitation.  Neither  of 
us  spoke — my  friend  being  under  the  same  difficulty  as 
myself  to  hit  upon  an  appropriate  topic  by  which  to 
commence  a  conversation  with  this  chief  of  a  band  of 
savages,  and  the  usual  salutation  of  a  "  very  fine  day," 
seeming  to  me,  under  the  circumstances,  inappropriate 


452        A  Consultation   Dinner. 

to  the  individual  and  the  occasion ;  but  I  was  relieved 
hy  the  magistrate  breaking  silence. 

"  Much  kangaroo,  Musqueeto,  in  this  part  of  the 
country?" 

•'Boomah — there,"  replied  Musqueeto,  pointing  out 
an  immense  kangaroo  in  the  bushes,  which  had  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  horrified  Scroggs. 

My  excellent  friend  presuming,  I  suppose,  that  eating 
and  drinking  among  friends  facilitated  conversation,  and 
being  stimulated  besides  by  certain  internal  promptings 
that  his  fast  had  continued  for  more  than  a  reasonable 
time,  immediately  intimated  to  his  new  acquaintance  his 
inclination  for  a  steak. 

Musqueeto  uttered  a  few  words  to  one  of  his  retinue, 
and  without  further  ceremony,  some  pieces  of  the  kan- 
garoo were  brought  to  us ;  we  motioned  to  them  to  put 
the  venison  on  the  fire,  which  they  did  with  a  readiness 
to  oblige  which  inspired  us  with  some  confidence  in  their 
present  sincerity. 

When  the  meat  was  cooked,  we  sat  down  on  the 
ground,  on  which  Musqueeto  also  squatted  down  oppo- 
site. Some  of  his  companions  stood  at  a  little  distance, 
eyeing  us  with  much  curiosity,  but  without  rudeness; 
and  in  this  way,  with  a  charming  absence  of  all  ceremony, 
we  partook  of  a  sociable  meal  with  our  new  acquaintance, 
but  in  perfect  silence. 

Thinking  the  occasion  favourable,  I  suggested  to  my 
friend  the  expediency  of  propitiating  our  host  by  a  glass 
of  rum,  as  an  appropriate  introduction  to  the  object  of 
our  journey.  The  magistrate  agreed  with  me,  and  called 
quietly  to  Scroggs  to  bring  the  bottle  and  a  pannikin. 
I  observed  that  Musqueeto  gave  a  flash  of  his  eye  at 


MusQUEETo's   Suspicion.  453 

the  magistrate's  call,  and  gathered  up  his  legs  under 
him,  reiidy  for  a  spring,  upon  which  I  instantly  called 
to  Scroggs, 

"  Show  the  bottle  of  rum  I" 

Scroggs  raised  on  high  his  long-cherished  bottle,  at 
the  view  of  which,  I  saw  that  Musquceto's  eyes  resumed 
their  usual  expression,  and  he  quietly  returned  to  his 
former  position  of  repose.  Meanwhile  the  disappointed 
Scroggs,  with  his  mouth  watering  at  the  sight  of  a  re- 
past in  which  he  did  not  share,  and  his  eyes  becoming 
tearful  at  the  prospect  of  the  total  consumption  of  his 
beloved  rum,  approached  with  slow  and  reluctant  steps 
to  resign  his  treasure. 

"  These  savages,  sir,"  said  he,  in  an  insinuating  way, 
to  the  magistrate,  "are  very  suspicious — very.  If  you 
like,  sir,  I  will  taste  a  little  of  the  rum  first — that  he 
may  see  it  is  all  right,  and  that  we  mean  no  harm  to 
him.     Allow  me  to  take  out  the  cork  ?" 

"Make  haste  back,"  said  the  magistrate,  "and  mount 
your  horse,  that  you  may  be  ready  to  act  in  case  of  need. 
This  rum  may  be  of  service  to  us,  and  we  don't  want  it 
for  our  own  drinking ;  we  can  get  plenty  more  when  we 
go  home." 

So  saying,  my  friend  took  summary  possession  of  the 
bottle,  which  the  disconsolate  Scroggs  relinquished  with 
a  pitiable  sigh,  and  the  salt  and  savour  of  life  having 
now  departed  from  him,  he  resumed  his  seat  lugubriously 
on  the  back  of  his  horse  with  his  hapless  body,  leaving 
his  soul  behind  him  in  the  bottle. 

The  magistrate  poured  into  the  pannikin  a  portion  of 
the  rum  with  the  same  seriousness  with  wliich  it  might 
be  supposed  he  would  have  offered  a  libation  to  the  in- 


454  A   Savage  has  a  Soul! 

fernai  gods,  and  proiFering  it  to  tlie  presiding  deity  of 
the  spot,  that  condescending  personage  turned  it  down 
with  an  oiF-handed  dexterity  which  would  have  done 
honour  to  an  inhabitant  of  the  far-famed  St,  Giles  in 
the  mother  country,  and  with  gusto  which  overcame  the 
habitual  reserve  of  a  native.  He  evinced  his  delecta- 
tion at  the  imbibing  of  the  liquor  by  a  grim  smile,  which 
made  me  involuntarily  grasp  my  fowling-piece  a  little 
closer,  and  slapping  his  breast  he  held  out  the  pan- 
nikin for  a  fresh  supply.  But  we  thought  this  a  fit 
opportunity  to  enter  into  some  sort  of  treaty  for  the  re- 
storation of  the  child. 

"  Musqueeto  kill  white  man  ?"  said  the  magistrate; 
"why  Musqueeto  kill  white  man?" 

"  White  man  great  rascal,"  replied  Musqueeto,  "try 
kill  piccaninny — Musqueeto  kill  him." 

"Why  Musqueeto  take  piccaninny?"  pursued  my 
friend;  "Musqueeto  want  to  keep  piccaninny  and  make 
her  gin  to  black  man  ?" 

Musqueeto  shook  his  head,  and  it  seemed  to  me  if 
lie  had  known  how  he  would  have  laughed  at  this  in- 
quiry. 

"  Piccaninny  white !"  said  he;  "not  good  for  black 
man." 

"  Why  take  piccaninny  ?"  persisted  my  friend  ;  "  why 
save  her  from  bad  white  man  ?" 

It  seemed  that  Musqueeto  suddenly  understood  what 
the  magistrate  was  driving  at,  for  his  countenance  as- 
sumed an  appearance  almost  of  intelligence,  and  he  im- 
mediately replied : — 

"  Gypsey's  piccaninny  ;  Gypsey  die  ;  Gypscy  good  to 
Musqueeto — he  Musquccto's  brother ;  Musqueeto  not 
let  bad  white  man  kill  Gypsey's  piccaninny." 


I    M  U  S  Q  U  E  E  T  O  '  S     li  R  0  T  II  E  R  I  455 

My  friend  and  I  gazed  at  each  other  with  astonish- 
ment at  these  words,  and  reading  each  other's  thoughts, 
we  could  not  but  admire  the  strange  concatenation  of 
events  which  had  preserved  the  life  of  the  bush-ranger'a 
daughter  from  such  imminent  perils  !  But  as  I  had  been 
constituted  guardian  of  that  deceased  character's  child,  I 
considered  that  there  was  a  means  of  easy  understanding 
if  I  could  make  the  native  comprehend  the  nature  of  my 
legal  and  social  position  in  respect  to  his  temporary 
ward. 

"Gypsey,"  said  I,  "  Musqueeto's  brother." 

"  Gypsey,  Musqueeto's  brother,"  repeated  the  black 
chief. 

Thought  I  to  myself  the  Gypsey's  family  would  not 
consider  themselves  very  much  flattered  by  this  unex- 
pected claim  on  their  relationship  by  ray  black  friend 
here,  but  at  any  rate  he  has  done  one  good  action  to 
atone  for  his  multitude  of  crimes,  and  so  I  will  not  flinch 
from  claiming  my  right  to  be  considered  as  a  member  of 
the  family. 

"  Musqucoto,"  said  I,  ''you  know  me?"  He  had 
been  more  than  once  at  my  house  with  his  mob,  and  had 
been  regaled  with  damper  and  boiling  hot  tea  plentifully 
sweetened  with  brown  suirar,  not  forcettinfr  an  occasional 
glass  of  rum. 

"You  Mister  Thornley?"  said  IMusqueeto. 

'  Yes,"  said  I;  "  and  I  Gypsey's  brother  !" 

Musqueeto  gave  me  a  quick  look,  wliieli  none  but  a 
savage  could  give,  in  which  was  expressed  the  blended 
wonder  and  suspicion  which  my  assumption  of  relation- 
ship with  the  Gypsey  had  excited,  and  I  continued — 

''Gypsey  Musqueeto's  brother;  Gypsey  Thornley's 
brother;  Thornley  Musqueeto's  brother." 


45G        An  Australian   Beauty. 

I  wished  to  lead  the  savage,  by  this  ingenious  process 
of  ratiocination,  as  my  friend  the  magistrate  called  it 
in  his  jocose  way,  to  consider  me  as  an  intimate  friend 
and  relation,  for  my  object  was  to  get  possession  of  the 
child,  with  his  concurrence,  so  as  to  avoid  bloodshed. 
Musqueeto  mused,  I  observed,  for  a  while,  on  these 
words,  and  then,  with  the  caution  of  the  savage,  he 
asked — 

"  Why  you  Gypsey's  brother?" 

"The  G-ypsey,"  said  I,  ''when  bad  white  man  kill 
him,  say  to  me — '  Give  bread  and  meat  to  my  picca- 
ninny— little,  so  big'  " — said  I,  describing  the  size  of  a 
child  of  six  or  seven  years  of  age.  "I  say  to  Gypsey, 
Thornley  Gypsey's  brother." 

Musqueeto  rose  from  his  sitting  position  when  I  had 
said  this,  and  spoke  to  one  of  his  people,  who  disappeared, 
and  presently  returned  with  a  tall  and  slender  young 
lady  of  a  bright  black  colour,  who,  from  her  air  and 
pretentions  we  immediately  concluded  was  the  favourite 
gin  of  the  grim  Musqueeto.  A  soldier's  old  jacket, 
without  buttons,  and  which,  with  a  graceful  negligence 
remained  open  in  front,  formed  an  airy  spencer  suitable 
for  summer  or  for  winter  wear,  and  a  red  cotton  hand- 
kerchief tied  around  her  woolly  black  poll  gave  her  a 
superior  air,  which  distinguished  her  from  her  less 
favoured  associates  of  the  seraglio.  No  other  article  of 
dress  than  that  of  which  w^e  have  made  modest  mention, 
prevented  the  free  exercise  of  her  supple  and  well-formed 
limbs.  As  an  honest  historian  I  am  obliged  to  record 
that  her  nose  was  very  broad  and  very  flat,  but  her  eyes 
were  large  and  bright.  Various  co(j[uettish  devices, 
depicted  in   a  mixture  of  resinous  gum  and  red  ochre, 


The  Child  Recovered!  457 

formed  a  striking  relief  to  the  monotonous  hue  of  her 
sable  skin,  and  a  fish-bone,  stuck  through  her  nose, 
added  a  finish  to  the  splendour  of  her  personal  appear- 
ance. 

To  this  amiable  divinity  Musqueeto  gave  some  brief 
directions,  and  the  lady,  retiring,  quickly  re-appcared, 
leading  by  the  hand  the  timid  and  shrinking  form  of 
the  Gypsey'a  daughter.  I  have  often  thought  that  when 
her  fancy  recals,  in  after  life,  the  romantic  scenes  of  her 
early  youth,  the  recollection  of  this  memorable  day  must 
form  a  curious  contrast  with  her  present  fortunes.  She 
raised  up  her  large  black  eyes,  which  instantly  reminded 
me  of  the  last  wild  look  of  the  Gypsey  bushranger,  and 
sought  among  us  for  some  familiar  face ;  but  meeting 
only  with  the  countenances  of  strangers,  she  cast  them 
down  again  in  disappointment  and  sadness,  as  if  doubt- 
ful whether  to  regard  the  white  strangers  as  friends  or 
foes. 

*'Georgiana,"  said  I,  softly. 

The  little  thing  started  at  the  secret  name,  and  clasp- 
ing her  tiny  hand,  she  stood  with  one  foot  advanced, 
trembling  and  irresolute,  while  she  searched  me  with 
her  lustrous  eyes,  to  discover  in  me  some  trace  of  a 
former  friend. 

I  think  I  never  saw  so  beautiful  a  child ;  she  was  the 
very  picture  of  loveliness,  and  possessed  that  indefina- 
ble and  irresistible  charm  with  which  infancy  and  inno- 
cence never  fail  to  move  the  coldest  human  heart. 
Struck  with  the  desolate  condition  of  the  child,  and 
possessed  with  the  sacred  nature  of  the  trust  that  I  had 
taken  on  me,  I  hold  out  my  arms,  and  said  to  her  in 
tones  which  touched  her  little  heart — 


458  The  Savages  Affected. 

"  Come  to  me,my  poor  little  orphan  girl ;  you  shall  bo 
a  daughter  among  my  children,  and  I  will  be  a  friend 
and  a  father  to  you." 

The  child  screamed  with  sudden  joy ;  bursting  into 
tears  she  bounded  into  my  arms,  and  with  passionate  sobs 
hid  her  little  face  in  my  bosom. 

The  very  savages  were  aifected  by  the  scene.  The 
women  gathered  round  us,  gazing  with  earnest  interest, 
and  the  harsher  lineaments  of  the  faces  of  the  men  be- 
came softened  at  the  touch  of  nature,  which  makes  the 
whole  world  kin. 

"  Look  out,  sir !"  cried  Sanders,  who  with  Scroggs 
had  approached  in  this  moment  of  excitement  close  to 
the  mingled  group ;  "  Take  care,  they  don't  take  you  at 
a  disadvantage.  You  never  know  when  to  trust  a  na- 
tive." 

"  You've  dropped  the  bottle,"  whined  Scroggs ;  "  there 
it  is  under  your  legs,  and  in  another  moment  it  will  be 
broken,  and  all  the  rum  will  be  lost." 

"And  now,"  said  the  magistrate  to  me,  "let  us  get 
back  to  some  place  of  settlement  without  loss  of  time, 
while  we  are  all  in  good  humour.  We  can  easily  carry 
the  child  with  us  on  horseback.  Now,  my  men,"  he 
continued  to  the  constables,  "keep  your  eyes  about 
you;  home's  the  word." 

"  I've  had  no  dinner,"  said  Scroggs,  with  a  woeful 
face.  "  I  declare  I  feel  as  if  my  two  sides  would  come 
together,  I'm  so  empty.  I've  taken  in  my  handker- 
chief round  my  middle  twice ;  the  next  tie  I  shall  come 
quite  in  two." 

"It  will  not  do,"  said  I,  "to  attempt  going  back 
without  a  supply  of  provisions ;  and  v»'e  have  no  dogs 


How  toCatch   an   Opossum.       459 

with  us  to  pull  a  kangaroo.  That  was  a  sad  mistake ; 
you  should  never  go  into  the  bush  without  kangaroo 
dogs ;  they  are  at  once  sentinels  and  purveyors." 

"Let  us  try  the  natives,"  said  the  magistrate;  ''per- 
haps they  can  help  us  to  some  provisions." 

"  Musqueeto,  can  you  get  some  kangaroo  for  us  ?" 

"Kangaroo?     Yees." 

He  gave  some  directions  to  his  followers,  who  entered 
into  the  project  with  much  alacrity,  and  they  immedi- 
ately commenced  their  preparations,  sharpening  up  their 
spears  and  getting  ready  their  waddies. 

It  is  remarkable  that  the  natives  of  Van  Diemcn's 
Land,  like  the  natives  of  the  Continental  Island,  have 
not  invented  the  bow  and  arrow,  although  they  have 
more  than  one  sort  of  wood  well  adapted,  from  its  tough- 
ness and  its  straightncss,  for  both  purposes.  The  long 
and  tough  sinews  of  the  kangaroo  are  well  fitted  for 
bow-strings,  and  the  Van  Diemcn's  Land  natives  have 
contrived  to  fabricate  from  the  fibres  of  the  bark  of  a 
tree,  to  which  the  name  of  stringy -bark  tree  has  been  given 
by  the  settlers,  a  sort  of  rough  net  in  which  they  deposit 
the  edible  gum  which  they  collect  in  their  journeys; 
but  they  have  not  applied  the  sinews  of  the  kangaroo 
to  the  uses  which  might  easily  be  made  of  them.  Their 
only  weapons  are  the  spear  and  the  waddy,  and  the  cres- 
cent-shaped womera  which  they  hurl  at  their  enemies 
in  battle,  and  at  the  kangaroo  in  hunting. 

The  women  understanding  that  we  wanted  meat  for 
the  piccaninny,  one  of  them  approached  us  with  a  small 
axe  made  of  sharpened  stone,  in  her  hand,  and  laughing 
and  smiling,  and  using  an  abundance  of  words,  which 
we  could  not  understand,  invited  us  by  jestures,  to  wit- 


460  Extraordinary   Feat. 

ness  her  operations.  We  accompanied  her  accordingly ; 
the  constables,  to  whom  we  had  distributed  the  remainder 
of  our  kangaroo  dinner,  still  remaining  on  guard,  with 
the  difference  only,  that  we  thought  they  might  venture 
to  tether  out  our  horses  in  a  nook  where  there  was  a 
tolerable  show  of  native  grass. 

We  followed  the  black  woman  to  the  margin  of  a 
forest  of  stringy-bark  trees  at  a  little  distance.  After 
snufl&ng  about  for  a  short  time,  like  a  hungry  spectator 
at  the  window  of  a  savoury  cook-shop,  she  fixed  on  a 
tree  in  which,  her  olfactory  organs  informed  her,  opos- 
sums dwelt.  As  she  was  unencximbered  by  any  article 
of  apparel,  she  had  no  occasion  to  take  off  her  clothes  to 
perform  her  dangerous  exploit,  which  we  presently  un- 
derstood was  to  ascend  the  naked  stem  of  the  tall  tree 
after  an  opossum.  The  woman  first  made  an  incision  on 
the  bark  of  the  tree  not  much  more  than  sufficient  to  re- 
ceive her  great  toe,  at  about  two  or  three  feet  from  the 
ground.  Placing  her  toe  in  the  gap,  she  raised  herself 
up,  sustaining  her  weight  on  that  single  member  of  her 
foot,  aided  by  a  sort  of  clinging  to  the  tree,  which  was 
far  too  thick  to  be  embraced  with  one  hand  and  arm ; 
with  her  other  arm  she  made  a  second  incision  with  her 
native  axe,  and  repeating  her  operation  at  the  necessary 
intervals,  she  rapidly  ascended  the  tree  to  a  height  of  at 
least  fifty  feet,  before  she  reached  its  spreading  branches. 
In  the  fork  of  the  trunk,  in  a  little  hollow,  was  an  opos- 
sum, which  she  quickly  pulled  out  and  killed.  Holding 
the  animal  in  one  of  her  hands,  she  descended  the  tree 
with  an  agility  which  excited  our  admiration,  and  with 
a  rapidity  and  apparent  carelessness  that  made  us  tremble. 
I  had  often  heard  talk  of  the  natives  performing  this 


Power  of  Finery.  461 

feat,  but  I  had  never  •witnessed  it  before,  and  it  was  with 
the  most  lively  curiosity,  therefore,  that  I  watched  the 
operation.  I  felt  quite  relieved  when  she  placed  her 
foot  safe  on  the  ground,  although  she  did  not  seem  aware 
that  she  had  done  anything  extraordinary.  Holding  the 
dead  opossum  by  one  ear,  she  gave  it,  laughing,  to  my 
little  charge,  and,  with  nods  and  laugliter,  retired.  I 
was  at  a  loss  how  to  reward  this  act  of  unaffected  kind- 
ness, when  luckily,  recollecting  that  I  had  a  purple  silk 
handkerchief  in  ray  pocket,  I  presented  it  to  our  sable 
benefactor ;  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  to  observe,  from 
the  deference,  mixed,  I  thought,  with  a  little  female 
envy,  which  was  paid  to  her  by  her  less  fortunate  com- 
panions, and  from  their  eager  examination  and  lively 
admiration  of  the  finery,  that  I  had  conferred  on  her  a 
gift  of  no  trifling  importance.  She  immediately  tied  it 
roimd  her  waist,  and  casting  a  triumphant  glance  at  the 
sultana  with  the  red  cotton  handkerchief,  much  iu  the 
same  way  as  a  young  lady  in  the  old  country,  iu  the 
conscious  superiority  of  a  new  bonnet,  of  the  latost 
fashion,  regards  a  humiliated  rival  in  an  old  one,  she 
took  a  seat  on  the  log  of  a  fallen  gum  tree,  in  an  atti- 
tude of  easy  dignity — not  courting,  but  submitting  to 
the  admiration  which  she  excited. 

In  the  meantime,  the  preparations  for  the  chase  of  the 
kangaroo,  after  the  fashion  of  the  natives,  were  com- 
pleted, and  Musqueeto,  summoning  the  united  strength 
of  his  establishment,  male  and  female,  old  and  young, 
we  sallied  forth  from  the  encampment,  leaving  the  con- 
stables to  guard  the  horses.  Holding  the  little  Georgi- 
ana  by  hor  hand,  for  she  would  not  quit  me  for  an  in- 
stant, 1  and  the  magistrate  accompanied  the  mob,  which 


462  A  Kangaroo   Chase 

consisted  of  five-and-twenty  persons,  two  or  three  females 
remaining  behind  to  take  care  of  the  children,  half  a 
dozen  of  which  had  emerged  from  some  back  recesses  on 
the  occasion  of  this  general  activity. 

I  did  not  much  like  the  distribution  of  a  bundle  of 
spears  among  the  men  who  all  had  waddies,  which  they 
held  in  their  hands  with  their  spears. 

'^I  hope,"  said  I  to  the  magistrate,  "  that  all  will  go 
on  well;  if  these  savages  should  become  excited  by  the 
hunt,  they  might  try  a  spear  on  us." 

'^Especially,"  replied  my  friend,  "if  Musqueeto,  or 
one  of  his  fellows  should  recognise  you  as  the  hero  who 
gave  them  those  disagreeable  doses  of  swan-shot  from  the 
hut  among  the  hills  some  time  since." 

"  Oh  !"  said  I,  "  I  had  a  beard  of  ten  days'  growth 
then,  and  my  dress  was  entirely  difierent." 

"  That  may  be ;  but  these  savages  have  sharp  eyes,  and 
they  never  betray  their  emotions  till  the  opportunity  ar- 
rives for  action.  Those  spears  and  waddies  make  one 
feel  very  disagreeable.  Heaven  grant  that  this  hunting 
may  not  prove  as  disastrous  as  the  Chevy  Chase  in  times 
of  yore." 

With  these  doubts  and  fears  we  should  have  been  glad 
to  back  out  of  this  ticklish  expedition,  but  it  was  too 
late. 


Cjinptn  |nrti|-fir0t. 

A  Kangaroo  Hunt  by  the  Natives — They  recognise  an  old  Enemy 
— The  Flight — The  Skirmish — The  Attack  renewed — Scrogg's 
generous  Devotion — Return  to  the  Clyde — Crab  resolves  to  leave 
the  Country. 

The  usual  torpidity  of  the  natives  was  now  changed 
to  the  most  lively  activity,  in  which  the  women,  and 
even  the  youngest  children,  joined.  The  men  jabbered 
to  one  another,  the  women  chattered  all  together,  and 
the  children  cut  little  savage  capers,  casting  juvenile 
spears  at  one  another  in  sport  and  frolic.  I  made  our 
guide  understand  that  we  wished  him  to  warn  us  of  any 
appearance  of  treachery,  but  he  had  no  apprehension  of 
any  hostile  intentions. 

"  No  want  to  fight  now,"  said  he ;  "  hunt  kangaroo." 

We  observed,  however,  that  he  did  not  mingle  with 
the  natives  in  their  proceedings,  but  with  a  sort  of  in- 
stinct that  he  was  safer  in  our  immediate  vicinity  than 
among  the  "  black  fellows,"  as  he  called  them,  he  kept 
close  to  our  side. 

The  naked  group  made  their  way  to  the  rear  of  the  en- 
campment, and,  at  the  distance  of  about  half  a  mile, 
Musqueeto  assumed  the  management  of  the  hunt.  He 
directed  half  of  his  party  to  proceed,  as  Tom  interpreted 
to  us,  to  a  distance  of  about  four  miles  from  the  spot 
where  we  stood,  and  another  party  to  extend  themselves 

(  «3  ) 


464        Native  Kangaroo   Hunt. 

circularly  to  the  right,  while  others  made  a  similar  cir- 
cuit to  the  left.  By  these  means  it  was  intended  to  en- 
close a  circle,  and  to 'drive  all  the  game  to  the  centre. 
In  the  dry  season  it  is  the  practice  of  the  natives  to  set 
fire  to  the  woods  and  so  dislodge  the  game,  which  they 
slaughter  as  it  flies  from  the  flames  towards  their  am- 
buscades. But,  on  the  present  occasion,  as  the  grass  will 
not  burn  in  the  winter  season,  they  were  obliged  to 
pursue  a  more  laborious  expedient. 

Musqueeto  now  sat  down  on  the  grass,  and  we  followed 
his  example,  stationing  ourselves  on  the  log  of  a  tree, 
and  Tom  informed  us  that  we  should  have  to  wait  till  the 
first  detachment  of  natives  reached  their  destination  be- 
fore it  would  be  time  for  us  to  advance. 

We  endeavoured,  in  the  meanwhile,  to  engage  Mus- 
queeto in  conversation,  but  he  was  not  inclined  to  talk, 
and  seemed  to  be  engaged  in  some  mental  calculation. 

''  This  is  a  new  scene,"  observed  the  magistrate;  "  I 
little  thought  that  you  and  I  should  be  engaged  in  a  hunt- 
ing expedition  with  our  equivocal  acquaintance  here." 

"  I  hope  it  may  all  end  well,"  said  I.  "  Since  you 
have  hinted  about  their  recognising  me,  I  have  had  very 
disagreeable  sensations.  A  fight  with  the  savages  would 
be  an  awkward  affair,  encumbered  as  we  should  be  with 
our  little  charge  impeding  our  motions." 

The  girl  crept  closer  to  me  at  the  expression  of  these 
fears,  but  said  nothing. 

"  It  was  only  a  few  days  ago,"  said  the  magistrate^ 
"that  I  was  reading  a  specious  argument  of  a  French 
writer  in  favour  of  natural  over  civilised  life  ;  I  am  in- 
clined to  think  that  if  the  eloquent  sophist  had  possessed 
the  experience  which  wc  have  of  these  savages — whose 


Primitive  state  of  Society.     465 

condition  may  be  considered  as  the  very  perfection  and 
model  of  the  primitive  state  of  society  which  the  Gene- 
vesc  philosopher  extolled — he  would  have  modified  his 
opinion." 

"The  natives  of  Van  Diemen's  Land,"  said  I,  "  seem 
to  be  but  one  degree  removed  from  the  animal  creation — 
a  sort  of  connecting  link  between  man  and  the  brute. 
Having  only  one  idea  above  the  brute,  and  that  is — to 
cat  him !  But  they  have  only  one  brute  to  eat — to 
wit,  the  kangaroo.  In  my  opinion,  the  degraded  con- 
dition of  the  natives  of  this  island  may  be  ascribed  in  a 
great  measure  to  the  nature  of  the  country  itself.  There 
is  no  fruit,  herb,  or  root  indigenous  to  the  soil  which  is 
fit  for  the  sustenance  of  man,  and  no  animal,  like  an 
ox,  a  sheep  or  a  goat,  capable  of  being  domesticated  so  as 
to  furnish  a  regular  supply  of  food.  The  only  animal 
fit  to  eat,  apart  from  the  opossum  and  such  nasty  things, 
is  tlie  kangaroo,  and  to  catch  the  kangaroo  the  natives 
must  be  continually  shifting  their  ground  ;  consequently 
tliey  are  prevented  from  acquiring  any  fixed  habitation, 
and  are  deprived  of  the  advantage  of  those  domestic 
habits  which  seem  to  form  the  first  step  in  the  progress 
of  civilization." 

'<  Could  you  ever  find  out,"  said  I,  ''whether  they 
have  any  idea  of  a  Divine  Being  ?" 

"  All  that  inquirers  have  been  able  to  make  out,"  re- 
plied my  friend,  "  is,  that  they  have  a  belief  in  an  evil 
spirit,  which  seeks  to  do  them  harm,  but  they  cannot 
discover  any  notion  among  them  of  a  good  or  creative 
spirit.  Cook  and  Flinders  have  described  long  ago  the 
religious,  or  rather  the  superstitious  ceremonies  of  the 
Sydney  natives ;  but  the  aborigines  of  this  island  either 
30 


466       Excitement  of  the  Chase. 

do  not  practise  the  same  comicalities,  or  we  have  not 
been  able  to  witness  them." 

"■  Our  ignorance  of  their  language,"  I  observed,  "must 
be  an  obstacle  to  our  acquiring  a  correct  knowledge  of 
their  religious  belief,  or  of  their  customs." 

''No  doubt;  but  their  language,  so  far  as  we  can  un- 
derstand it,  seems  capable  of  expressing  only  the  most 
simple  ideas ;  and  indeed  it  is  only  the  most  simple  ideas 
that  they  want  to  express." 

"They  are  good  mimics,"  said  I, 
"So  are  all  savages;  and  many  animals  excel  in  the 
same  way ;  birds  imitate  sounds,  and  monkeys  imitate 
gestures.    But  our  host  is  getting  up ;  I  suppose  the  sport 
is  about  to  begin." 

Musqueeto  rose  languidly  from  the  ground,  and  ejacu- 
lated an  order  right  and  left  to  the  natives  within  hear- 
ing, who  repeated  the  word  till  it  was  lost  in  the  dis- 
tance. We  then  moved  forward,  Musqueeto  taking,  or 
seeming  to  take  little  notice  of  us,  and  retaining  his  usual 
sulky,  stupid  look.  But  as  the  shouts  of  his  comrades 
grew  louder  and  louder,  and  the  distant  view  of  the  game 
occasionally  met  his  eye,  the  passions  of  the  savage  were 
roused  up,  and  his  listless  demeanour  rapidly  changed  to 
that  of  intense  animation,  as  he  gi-ew  hot  in  the  excite- 
ment of  the  hunt.  The  spirit  of  the  savage  now  began 
to  develope  itself,  and  it  was  with  hideous  sounds  and 
frantic  gestures,  which  I  should  in  vain  attempt  to  de- 
scribe, that  he  performed  his  part  towards  frightening 
the  game  into  the  centre  of  the  circle,  which  at  wide  in- 
tervals, was  formed  around  the  scared  and  terrified  ani- 
mals. But  these  intervals,  as  we  continued  our  advance, 
gradually  grew  less  and  less,  till  we  came  within  hearing 


MusQUEETo  Kills  nis  Game.      467 

of  tliose  who  formed  the  farthest  verge  of  the  enclosure. 
As  the  circle  narrowed,  and  as  we  caught  occasional 
glinipses  of  a  terrified  kangaroo,  the  cries  and  antics  of 
Musqueeto,  and  the  other  natives  to  the  right  and  left, 
who  were  in  sight,  became  more  violent  and  furious,  and 
the  black  naked  savages,  rattling  their  spears  and  bran- 
dishing their  waddies,  and  screaming  and  dancing  about 
in  the  most  raging  state  of  excitement,  resembled  a  band 
of  demons  engaged  in  some  infernal  orgies.  And  now, 
with  immense  strides,  a  monstrous  kangaroo  standing  six 
feet  high,  and  with  his  gigantic  tail  heaving  up  and 
down  behind  him,  hopped  past  us  to  the  left.  Mus- 
(|ueeto  saluted  him  with  a  spear,  which  stuck  in  his 
shoulder,  but  broke  off  among  the  bushes;  he  was  met 
by  the  natives  at  their  post,  who  drove  him  back  again 
by  their  shouts.  Musqueeto  darted  out  to  meet  him,  and 
before  the  animal  could  stop  itself  in  its  career,  he  struck 
it  sharply  on  the  crown  with  his  waddy.  The  creature 
shook  its  beautiful  head  and  ears  a  little,  stunned  by  the 
stroke,  and  Musqueeto,  taking  advantage  of  its  confu- 
sion, repeated  his  blows,  nimbly  avoiding  the  dashes 
which  the  kangaroo  made  at  him  with  the  formidable 
claws  of  its  hind  feet,  till  he  brought  him  to  the  ground. 
A  yell  of  triumph  proclaimed  this  first  success,  and 
Musqueeto,  no  longer  the  apathetic  native  which  he  so 
lately  appeared,  now  exhibited  himself  in  all  the  ferocity 
of  the  savage.  His  blood  was  up  from  his  struggle  with 
the  kangaroo,  and  his  exertions  liad  lashed  him  into  a 
state  of  almost  ungovernable  fury.  Seeing  him  in  this 
state  we  repented  having  engagjcd  in  this  perilous  sport, 
but  to  withdraw  at  such  a  moment  would  have  excited 
the  suspicion,  and  perhaps  the  anger  of  the  natives.    We 


468  A  Sportsman's  Habits. 

kept  our  fire-arms  ready,  therefore,  and  endeavoured  to 
preserve  our  coolness  and  presence  of  mind  in  the  midst 
of  the  general  excitement. 

The  circle  had  now  become  narrowed  as  close  as  was 
desired,  and  we  saw  five  kangaroos — foresters — in  the 
middle,  and  one  prodigious  fellow,  whom  the  natives 
greeted  with  the  title  of  boomah  !  boomah  !  Three  of 
the  foresters  were  quickly  dispatched  with  spears  and 
waddies,  but  the  boomah !  stood  in  the  midst  looking 
with  a  sort  of  defiance  on  his  enemies,  who  pressed  upon 
him.  Several  spears  were  soon  fixed  in  his  body.  He 
gave  a  bound  as  each  sharp  missile  pierced  his  skin ;  but 
he  still  stood  erect  seeking  for  a  passage  through  the  ranks 
of  his  assailants.  At  last,  as  a  party  of  three  or  four 
rushed  at  him  from  the  point  opposite  to  us,  and  tried  to 
reach  his  head  with  their  waddies,  he  gave  a  sudden 
plunge,  and  bounding  towards  the  spot  where  the  magis- 
trate, with  me  and  the  little  girl,  were  standing  in  silence, 
he  efiected  his  escape  beyond  the  circle.  Musqueeto 
stamped  on  the  ground  with  rage  and  passion  at  the  loss, 
and  at  that  moment,  the  habit  of  the  old  sportsman  taking 
possession  of  me,  I  raised  up  my  piece  and  selecting  the 
right-hand  barrel,  which  always  contained  a  ball,  I  fired ; 
I  was  lucky  enough  to  liit  the  back  of  its  head,  the  ball 
passing  through  it.  The  animal  made  no  cry,  for  the 
kangaroo  never  utters  any  sound,  and  giving  one  last 
tremendous  bound  into  the  air,  fell  dead.  At  the  report 
of  my  fowling-piece  the  cries  of  the  natives  instantly 
cdased,  and  they  became  motionless  as  statutes,  casting 
rapid  glances  of  suspicion  and  fear  at  me  and  at  one 
another.  This  sudden  silence  succeeding  the  furious 
outcries  of  the  preceding  moment  had  a  peculiar  and 


The  Constables  Alarmed.       469 

ptartling  effect.  I  immediately  ran  to  tlie  game,  and  first, 
with  the  precaution  of  an  old  settler  in  the  bush,  I  re- 
loaded my  piece,  the  native.s  gazing  at  me  in  silence.  I 
then  beckoned  to  the  nearest  native  to  come  to  me,  point- 
ing to  the  kangaroo,  and  inviting  him  by  gestures  to  take 
the  animal;  he  hesitated,  and  looked  at  the  others. 
Calling  black  Tom,  I  bade  him  explain  to  the  natives 
that  1  considered  the  game  belonged  to  them,  and  as 
soon  as  they  understood  my  meaning  they  came  forward, 
but  slowly  and  doubtingly.  Musqueeto,  however,  came 
up  without  ceremony,  and,  examining  the  venison  with 
the  precision  of  a  connoisseur,  he  evinced  unqualified  de- 
light at  the  prize.  Four  natives,  uniting  their  strength, 
contrived  to  carry  the  kangaroo  to  their  encampment, 
which  was  at  no  great  distance ;  while  the  rest  went  for- 
ward to  make  preparations  for  a  feast.  Before  we  ar- 
rived at  the  fires  we  were  met  by  the  two  constables,  who 
had  been  alarmed  by  the  report  of  my  piece.  They  had 
lost  no  time  in  throwing  the  saddles  on  the  horses,  and 
had  started  immediately  to  our  assistance. 

"We  feared  that  you  were  in  for  it,"  said  Sanders; 
*'  and  Scroggs  was  all  ready  for  a  scrimmage,  for  he's  no 
flinchcr  when  it  comes  to  business — and  that's  the  use  of 
him." 

"It's  no  use,"  said  Scroggs,  "to  stand  shilly-shally- 
ing ;  the  best  way  is  to  shoot  'em  down  at  once,  and 
then  you're  sure  tUcy  can't  do  you  any  harm.  Never 
trust  a  native !" 

"Better  mount  your  horse,  sir,"  advised  Sanders; 
"they've  got  their  spears  and  their  waddies  ready  in 
their  hands,  and  there's  no  knowing  when  they  may  be 
inclined   to   use   them.      Look   at   those   three   black 


470       A  Suspicious  Confidence. 

guards  yonder  jabbering  together,  and  pointing  to  Mr. 
Thornley." 

"They  are  talking  about  his  capital  shot,"  replied 
the  magistrate,  "  and  wondering,  perhaps,  how  it  was 
done." 

"  May-be,  sir ;  but  I  don't  like  the  way  they  left  off 
when  we  looked  at  them.     Better  be  on  our  guard,  sir." 

We  had  no  apprehension  of  any  violence  being  at- 
tempted, but  we  thought  it  best  to  be  ready,  so  we  took 
our  horses  from  the  constables  and  led  them  by  the  bri- 
dle. I  put  the  child  on  mine,  telling  her  not  to  be 
frightened,  but  to  hold  on  fast  by  the  mane.  In  this 
order  we  proceeded  back  to  the  fires,  and  the  natives 
distributed  themselves  about,  the  game  being  cast  in  the 
middle  of  the  open  space.  I  saw  two  snakes  lying  by 
the  side  of  the  kangaroos,  and  I  asked  Tom  what  they 
were  going  to  do  with  them. 

"  Eat  'em,"  said  Tom  ;  ''  snake  good — eat  many  snake 
at  Sydney." 

As  he  spoke,  a  native  took  up  the  snakes,  and,  without 
skinning  them,  or  performing  any  other  operation  of 
cleanliness,  threw  them  on  the  fire ;  and  after  they  had 
been  done  to  his  mind,  he  and  one  or  two  others,  who 
seemed  to  have  a  right  to  partake,  devoured  them  with 
much  apparent  satisfaction. 

They  now  proceeded  to  dismember  the  largest  of  the 
kangaroos,  and  as  the  pieces  of  flint,  which  served  as 
knives,  were  but  clumsy  tools  to  work  with,  I  took  out 
my  bush-knife  and  presented  it  to  Muscjueeto.  The 
knife  contained  one  powerful  blade  and  a  smaller  one, 
with  a  saw.  I  opened  the  saw,  and  explained  its  use  to 
the  natives  around,  who  were  much  struck  with  the  con- 


Native  s'  Curiosity.  471 

trivance ;  hut  tlie  large  blade  pleased  them  most.  Mus- 
queeto  condescended,  on  this  occasion,  to  make  use  of 
his  new  acquisition,  by  cutting  to  pieces  the  kangaroo- 
He  first  cut  off  the  head,  which  he  threw  on  one  side, 
and  then  separated  the  shoulders  and  body  from  the 
loins,  and  with  more  politeness  than  I  had  given  him 
credit  for,  he  pushed  towards  us  the  hind  quarters — the 
best  part  of  the  animal — inviting  us  to  take  it.  Sanders, 
dismounting,  threw  it  over  the  pommel  of  his  saddle, 
and  resuming  his  seat,  urged  us  to  lose  no  time  in  set- 
ting out,  as  we  were  now  supplied  with  sufficient  pro- 
vision to  last  until  we  should  reach  some  stock-hut,  or 
settler's  farm.  We  mounted  accordingly,  but  the  mag- 
istrate and  I  lingered  for  a  few  moments  to  observe  the 
curiosity  with  which  the  natives  examined  the  head  of 
the  kangaroo,  which  had  been  pierced  by  the  ball  from 
my  fowling-piece.  From  the  examination  of  the  hole 
through  the  head,  they  were  led  to  the  examination  of  the 
instrument  that  effected  it,  and  three  or  four  of  them 
crowded  around  me,  pointing  eagerly  to  the  ornamental 
stock  which  was  studded  with  bright  silver  nails,  and 
had  a  broad  piece  of  silver  plate  on  the  bend  of  the 
stock,  usually  placed  there  to  receive  the  engraving  of 
the  name.  As  I  had  held  the  stock  of  my  piece  under 
my  right  arm,  the  natives  had  not  had  the  opportunity 
of  observing  it  before,  but  now  they  gazed  on  it  with  an 
expression  of  eagerness  and  surprise  as  if  they  recognized 
it  as  an  old  acquaintance. 

"  Look  out,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  ''  the  same  three  sav- 
ages that  we  remarked  jabbering  together  before,  have 
got  their  eyes  on  your  fowling-piece." 

"  Thornley,"  said  the  magistrate,  earnestly,  "  I  am 


472        The  Natives  Attack  Us. 

sure  you  are  recognized ;  those  natives  remember  your 
piece ;  we  had  better  be  off.  Do  you  go  first  with  the 
child,  and  I  with  the  two  constables  will  bring  up  the 
rear,  three  abreast.     Can  Tom  run  at  a  pinch  ?" 

''As  fast  as  you  can  canter,"  said  Sanders. 

"  Move  on  then,  and  let  us  lose  no  time." 

I  and  the  magistrate  mounted  our  horses,  when  a  yell 
broke  out  from  the  clustering  savages,  which  made  the 
woods  ring  again ;  a  yell  so  loud  and  thrilling,  that  it 
made  our  horses  start  and  champ  their  bits.  Had  any 
other  stimulus  been  wanting  to  hasten  our  movements, 
it  now  appeared  in  the  shape  of  a  spear  thrown  by  a 
willing  arm  at  me,  but  which  missed  and  stuck  in  the 
flank  of  Scroggs's  horse.  The  animal  did  not  wait  for 
a  second  spurring,  nor  Scroggs  for  a  second  hint,  and 
the  sight  of  this  open  declaration  of  war  operated  on  us 
all.  With  one  accord  we  gallopped  off  round  the  base 
of  the  hill,  Tom  preceding  us,  who,  however,  was 
quickly  left  behind.  Seeing  this,  the  magistrate  called 
out  to  us  to  pull  up,  and  he  directed  Sanders  to  let  Tom 
mount  behind  him  as  the  ground  was  level,  till  we  got 
beyond  the  reach  of  the  natives.  The  delay,  however, 
enabled  the  natives  to  intercept  us  at  the  turn  of  the 
hill,  and  we  encountered  them  standing  on  the  bank  on 
our  right.  We  sheered  our  horses  off  beyond  the  reach 
of  their  spears,  but  a  woracra,  cast  by  some  vigorous 
native,  struck  Scroggs's  horse  on  the  hind  leg,  and 
caused  a  temporary  halt. 

"  Steady,"  cried  the  magistrate,  ''  we  have  a  clear  field 
and  no  trees."    A  shower  of  spears  interrupted  his  speech. 

*'  Sanders,  pick  off  that  native  to  the  right,  with  the 
bundle  of  spears  in  his  left  hand." 


The  Fight  Continued.  473 

The  constable  fired,  and  the  native  fell.  At  this 
check  the  rest  retreated  among  the  trees  and  bushes. 

"  Now,  Scroggs,  my  man,  you  must  make  your  horse 
go;  man's  life  is  worth  more  than  a  horse's.  Keep  up 
for  four-and-twenty  hours,  and  we  are  safe." 

But  wc  could  make  but  slow  progress  with  the  crip- 
pled horse,  and  we  would  not  leave  the  man  behind. 
We  jogged  on,  therefore,  for  another  hour,  skirting  a 
thick  wood  to  our  right,  till  we  came  to  the  base  of  a 
scrubby  hill. 

"Now,  sir,"  said  Sanders,  "if  the  natives  are  deter-, 
mined  to  make  a  fight  of  it,  this  is  the  place  where  they'll 
do  it.  They  have  found  out  that  Mr.  Thornley  is  the 
same  white  man  whom  they  fought  with  before,  and  no 
doubt  he  killed  some  of  their  relations  at  that  time,  and 
the  survivors  will  have  blood  for  blood ;  it's  always  the 
way  with  the  natives." 

"  How  was  it,"  said  I,  ''  that  Musqueeto  was  so  quiet 
then  ?  he  must  have  known  me." 

"  You  see,  sir,  he's  a  Sydney  native,  and  doesn't 
rightly  belong  to  any  tribe  in  this  island.  If  you  had 
hurt  one  of  his  gins,  that  would  have  been  another  mat- 
ter, for  the  natives  are  like  the  whites  in  that — they 
don't  like  our  people  to  take  their  gins ;  and  that's  what 
gives  rise  to  most  of  the  quarrels  between  the  natives 
and  the  stock-keepers.  The  stock-keepers  entice  their 
gins  away  by  a  tenpenny  nail,  or  a  bit  of  broken  glass 
bottle,  or,  best  of  all,  a  red  handkerchief — there's  no- 
thing like  a  bit  of  red  rag  to  come  over  a  gal  with,  let 
her  be  black  or  white,  and  then  the  natives  don't  like  it, 
and  so  they  have  to  fight  it  out." 

"  And  so  must  we  fight  it  out,"  said  the  magistrate, 


474        The  Native's  Challenge. 

"  for  there  are  the  natives  coming  forward  in  a  body.  I 
am  sorry  for  it,  but  if  we  must  defend  our  lives,  the  best 
way  is  to  act  decisively." 

By  this  time  we  had  reached  the  top  of  the  hill,  and 
beneath  us  was  a  level  plain  of  considei'able  extent,  but 
the  descent  of  the  hill  was  very  steep  and  rugged.  We 
drew  ourselves  up  on  a  clear  space,  and  waited  for  the 
attack.  The  natives  also  drew  themselves  up  at  a  dis- 
tance of  about  a  hundred  yards,  and  one  of  them,  advanc- 
ing towards  us,  with  a  waddy  in  his  right  hand,  and  a 
bundle  of  spears  in  his  left,  began  a  speech  in  a  loud 
but  calm  voice,  using  abundant  action,  but  without  un- 
seemly noise  or  passion. 

"  What  does  he  say,  Tom  ?"  said  the  magistrate. 

"  He  say  you  all  bad  white  men." 

"And  what  more  ?  he  must  say  more  than  that  in  that 
long  speech." 

"  He  say  you  come  take  his  country,  and  eat  his  kan- 
garoo, and  take  his  gins.  He  say  you  very  bad  white 
men.  And  he  say,  this  gentleman,  Mitter  Thornley ,  very 
bad  white  man  indeed;  he  kill  him  brudder — brudder 
of  black  fellow  dere — and  he  say  he  want  Mitter  Thorn- 
ley  to  go  stand  there  for  him  to  throw  spear  at  him." 

"  He  sends  you  a  challenge  to  fight  a  duel,  Thornley," 
said  the  magistrate.  ''  As  a  gentleman  and  man  of  honour 
you  can't  refuse,  or  Blackee  will  post  you." 

"  Mitter  Thornley  go  tand  dere,"  said  Tom,  "  black 
fellow  throw  one,  two,  three,  many  spear  at  him;  then 
black  fellow  no  want  to  fight ;  only  kill  Mitter  Thornley  j 
then  very  good  friends." 

"  Come,  Thornley,"  said  my  friend,  laughing,  "  it  is 
plain  that  you  must  perform  the  part  of  Quintus  Curtius 
on  this  occasion." 


A  Parley.  475 

"  Please,  sir,"  said  Scroggs,  ''  I  don't  know  how  Squint- 
ing Curtis  managed  with  the  natives,  but  if  we  have 
only  to  do  with  tliat  one  jawing  away  tliere,  we  might 
buy  him  off,  perhaps,  with  something  that  we  have  about 
us.  There's  the  remains  of  the  bottle  of  rum;  offer 
him  that." 

Tom  advanced  accordingly,  calling  out  "corrobara," 
meaning  thereby  that  he  wished  for  a  parley  to  talk  the 
matter  over  a  bit  with  the  aggrieved  native.  Tom  pro- 
posed that  the  half  bottle  of  rum  should  end  the  affair 
amicably,  but  the  offer  was  indignantly  rejected.  Tom 
reported  progress,  and  the  native  continued  his  ha- 
rangue, enumerating  over  and  over  again  the  injuries 
which  he  had  received,  and  the  vengeance  which  he 
would  take. 

"Let  us  try  him  with  something  more,"  said,  the  mag- 
istrate, "it is  something  to  get  him  to  negotiate  at  all 
for  the  price  of  his  revenge;  if  it  is  only  a  question 
of  amount  I  think  we  may  manage  it.  Let  us  consult 
Tom ;  Tom,  what  shall  we  give  him  ?" 

"You  give  bottle  of  rum;  Mitter  Thornley's  red 
handkerchief  for  his  gin;  and  give  him  buttons  from 
your  coat." 

"  My  coat  buttons  !"  said  the  magistrate.  "  Well,  to 
save  my  friend's  valuable  life,  and  to  prevent  a  breach  of 
the  peace — for  I  see  Thornley  is  red  hot  to  fight  this  duel 
— I  suppose  I  must  let  him  have  them." 

Tom  was  accordingly  despatched  wath  these  new 
presents;  but  the  native  now  took  a  fancy  to  Tom's 
axe,  and,  after  some  chaffering,  Tom  surrendered  it. 
But  there  was  still  a  hitch,  and  our  ambassador  returned 
again. 


476  SCROGGS   FOR   A    TARGET. 

''Black  fellow  say,  that,  'cause  Mitter  Thornley  hab 
the  piccaninny,  he  throw  one  little  spear  at  that  man 
there  instead." 

"  Throw  a  spear  at  me  !"  exclaimed  Scroggs,  "I  won't 
have  any  spears  thrown  at  me !  Tell  him  to  go  and  be 
hanged !" 

"  Black  fellow  say,"  said  Tom,  ''  he  must  throw  one 
little  spear  at  somebody,  'cause  if  he  no  throw  spear  all 
the  mob  point  finger  at  him.  He  say,  he  no  hurt  white 
man,  only  stick  spear  in  him  a  little  bit." 

"  Stick  a  spear  in  me  a  little  bit !"  said  Scroggs ;  "I'll 
stand  no  such  thing !  Let  him  stick  his  spears  into  the 
gum-trees,  if  he  likes.  What  am  I  to  have  spears  stuck 
in  me  for,  more  than  anybody  else  ?" 

"  i\Iy  good  fellow,"  said  the  magistrate,  ''  if  the  sacri- 
fice of  yourself  will  have  the  efiect  of  preventing  a  fight, 
and  of  saving  the  efiiision  of  blood,  I  should  advise  you 
to  consent ;  but,  of  course  I  cannot  order  you  in  such  a 
matter ;  it  is  entirely  for  your  own  consideration  and 
generosity  to  determine  whether  you  will  be  the  means, 
for  a  trifling  smart  perhaps,  to  save  many  human  lives. 
Remember  Quintus  Curtius !" 

<' Squinting  Curtis  !    He  never  stood  up  to  have 

spears  shied  at  him  I'll  be  bound." 

"If  you  go  through  this  part  well,"  said  the  magis- 
trate, '•  I  shall  certainly  recommend  you  to  the  governor 
for  reward  and  promotion." 

"  It's  very  hard,"  whined  Scroggs,  "but  I  am  always 
to  be  the  one  to  have  the  worst  hand  at  the  game.  It 
was  my  bottle  of  rum  that  those  black  rascals  swallowed, 
and  now  that  it  has  got  their  pluck  up,  I  am  to  be  a 
cockshy  for  that  rampaging  devil  there,  that  keeps  bran- 
dishing his  spears  about." 


Money  or  Life?  477 

"I'll  tell  you  ■what,  my  man,"  said  I,  "  I  don't  think 
any  harm  will  come  of  it,  or  I  would  not  consent  to  your 
going;  but  if  you'll  take  the  job  off  my  hands,  as  I've 
got  the  child  to  take  care  of,  I'll  give  you  a  hundred 
dollars !" 

"  AVell,  said  Scroggs,  "I'll  go,  but  I  dont  like  it. 
You  mean  a  hundred  dollars  in  money,  not  property  ?" 

"Yes,"  said  I,  ''  a  hundred  silver  dollars  down." 

"  It's  for  the  sake  of  the  child  I  go,  not  the  money. 
But  nobody  can  say  I  haven't  a  right  to  something  for 
making  a  target  of  myself  for  that  black  rascal  to  stick 
his  spears  in." 

"  Why,  he'll  never  hit  you,"  said  Sanders.  "  You 
have  a  right  to  one  spear  to  defend  yourself  with  accord- 
ing to  the  customs  of  the  natives." 

''  The  desire  to  get  the  dollars  outweighing  his  fears, 
the  doughty  constable  proceeded  to  the  spot  where  this 
novel  sort  of  monomachia  was  to  take  place,  and  stand- 
ing about  forty  yards  from  the  native,  waited  with  a 
most  rueful  countenance  for  the  commencement  of  the 
ceremony.  The  native  treated  him  in  the  first  place 
with  an  explanatory  and  expostulatory  harangue,  which 
the  miserable  Scroggs  received  much  in  the  same  way  as 
a  criminal  listens  to  the  congratulatory  condolences  of 
the  executioner  before  he  is  turned  off.  The  native 
then  performed  various  mystic  evolutions,  which  so  pro- 
tracted the  proceedings,  that  the  impatient  Scroggs  cried 
out — 

"  D you,  if  you're  going  to  throw  a  spear  at  me, 

shy  away,  and  don't  keep  me  waiting  in  this  manner  !" 

The  only  word  which  the  black  man  understood  was 
the  first,  which  almost  all  the  natives  had  picked  up  from 


478         How  ScROGGS  Stands  it. 

the  frequent  use  of  that  expletive  by  the  stock-keepers, 
with  whom  they  mostly  came  in  contact  5  but  as  he  well 
knew  it  was  an  epithet  of  vituperation,  he  took  it  as  a 
sign  of  heroic  defiance  from  the  magnanimous  Scroggs, 
and  suddenly  stopping  short  in  his  fantastic  antics,  he 
cast  a  spear  at  the  constable,  which  narrowly  missed  his 
arm,  and  whirred  rapidly  past  him  for  more  than  twenty 
yards. 

"  Hulloa,"  cried  Scroggs,  ^'  that's  too  close  to  be  plea- 
sant.    Take  it  easy,  will  you,  you  ugly  blackguard !" 

The  next  spear  struck  him  on  his  right  side,  but  meet- 
ing there  with  a  tobacco-box,  it  was  luckily  stopped 
from  doing  further  mischief  than  staving  in  the  lid  of  it. 
But  this  was  too  much  for  Scroggs.  Bestowing  a  hearty 
curse  on  all  the  natives  in  the  island,  and  including  him- 
self in  his  general  execration  for  being  such  a  fool  as  to 
stand  there  to  be  made  a  sieve  of,  he  ignominiously  turned 
tail,  and  the  next  missile  projected  by  the  savage  took 
effect  in  his  fleshy  protuberance  behind.  Scroggs  gave  a 
roar  that  might  have  done  credit  to  a  wild  bull,  and  with- 
out waiting  for  further  compliments,  ran  back  to  us, 
Sanders  laughing  heartily  at  his  condition. 

"  I  say,  Scroggs,  my  boy,  you'll  never  be  able  to  show 
your  wounds  that  way.  Do  you  remember  the  sergeant 
of  the  40th  showing  us  his  wounds  in  front  ?  It  will 
never  do  to  leave  them  behind.  Go  and  let  the  black 
fellow  have  another  shy  at  your  chest,  that  you  may  get 
honourably  marked  and  look  respectable." 

"  A  hundred  dollars,"  said  Scroggs,  "  in  dollars,  not 
property !"  pleased  to  find  himself  without  more  hurts. 
''Well — I  wouldn't  mind  standing  another  shy  for  the 
same  money." 


Arrive  at  Home,  479 

The  native,  who  had  given  a  yell  of  triumph  when  he 
saw  his  victim  with  the  spear  sticking  in  behind  him, 
now  gathered  up  his  spoils,  and  returning  to  his  compan- 
ions we  saw  no  more  of  the  natives  for  that  time,  and  we 
proceeded  on  our  way. 

We  had  to  sleep  one  night  in  the  bush,  which  we 
managed  as  well  as  we  could,  and  towards  the  night  of 
the  next  day  we  reached  a  stock-hut  to  the  east  of  Salt- 
Pan  Plains.  Here  we  parted  with  Tom,  the  magis- 
trate giving  him  an  order  on  a  storekeeper  at  Launceston, 
to  supply  him  with  anything  he  pleased  to  the  amount 
of  five  pounds;  and  cutting  across  the  country  to  Oat- 
lands,  we  were  glad  to  repose  ourselves  at  a  comfortable 
inn.  At  this  place  we  learnt  that  the  Jupiter  had  sailed 
two  days  before,  and  as  I  was  anxious  to  get  home  with  my 
charge,  I  begged  the  magistrate  to  proceed  to  Launceston 
and  ascertain  what  had  become  of  the  uncle  of  Georgiana. 
I  may  as  well  say  here,  that  my  friend  found  that  he 
had  escaped  from  the  island  on  board  that  vessel. 

The  subsequent  difficulties  which  my  charge  had  to 
caeounter,  I  shall  have  to  relate  in  their  proper  place. 
The  constables,  at  my  request,  accompanied  me  to  the 
Clyde,  striking  across  the  country  by  a  short  cut  from 
Jericho.  I  rewarded  them  liberally  for  their  activity 
and  good  conduct,  giving  Scroggs  an  order  on  the  bank 
at  Hobart  Town,  for  the  hundred  dollars,  according  to 
my  promise.  My  wife  and  children  received  the  stranger 
with  an  affectionate  kindness  and  sympathy,  which  soon 
reached  her  little  heart,  and  in  a  short  time  she  con- 
sidered herself  as  a  child  of  the  family.  After  recount- 
ing my  adventures,  and  my  escape  from  the  cavern  of 
the  red-house,  my  wife  scolding  me,  of  course,  for  my 


480  Crab  comes  Home. 

rashness  in  running  such  a  risk,  I  lost  no  time  in  turn- 
ing my  attention  to  the  affairs  of  my  form,  which  had 
been  for  so  long  a  time  interrupted  by  the  various  acci- 
dents which  had  befallen  me.  On  inquiring  for  Crab,  I 
was  informed  that  he  had  set  out  for  his  sheep-run  an 
hour  or  two  after  I  had  started  for  Hobart  Town,  and 
had  not  returned.  His  absence  did  not  give  me  any  un- 
easiness at  the  time ;  but  another  week  having  passed 
away  without  his  appearance,  I  became  alarmed,  and  be- 
gan seriously  to  think  of  setting  out  in  search  of  him. 
As  we  were  discussing  the  matter,  towards  the  close  of 
the  day,  we  observed  our  old  friend  proceeding  across 
the  meadow,  in  the  direction  of  the  house.  He  seemed 
faint  and  exhausted,  and  his  clothes  were  dirtied  and 
stained  with  travel.  He  had  a  bundle  on  his  shoulder, 
the  weight  of  which  seemed  to  oppress  him,  and  he 
trudged  along,  leaning  on  a  stick,  in  a  manner  unusual 

to  his  vigorous  habits.     I  immediately  went  out  to  meet 
him,  and  to  assist  him  into  the  house.     He  sat  himself 

down   in   the  great  chair  with   a  deep  sigh,  casting  his 

load  on  the  floor,  which   rattled  on  the  ground  with  a 
jingling  crash. 
"  Thank  God  \"  "he  said,  "  I'm  at  home  again.     I 

thought  I  should  never  have  seen  you  any  more.     Such 

a  country  as  this    is  !     No   stage-coach — no  nothing  ! 

Eut  it  sarves  me  right;  I  ought  to  have  left  it  long  ago; 

but  now  I  have  made  up  my  mind.     The  next  ship  that 

goes  takes  me.     There's  nothing  but  wretchedness  here; 

you'll  all  be  ruined  and  murdered,  every  one — that's  my 

opinion." 

"  Why,  what  has  happened  ?"  said  I;  "  what  on  earth 

is  the  matter  with  you  ?" 


Crab's  Narrative.  481 

"What  has  "happened  ?  why,  everything  has  happened 
that  shouldn't  happen.  I'll  tell  ye  if  you'll  give  mo 
time;  but,  first  I  must  have  something  to  eat.  Oh! 
there's  the  mutton-chops.  Only  let  mc  get  a  little  life 
into  my  body,  and  then  I'll  tell  ye." 

But  the  adventures  of  Mr.  Crab  on  this  memorable 
journey  must  form  the  commencement  of  a  new  chapter. 
31 


How  Crab  sold  his  Sheep — The  embarrassment  of  Riches — Crab's 
Misadventures — He  resolves  to  leave  the  Colony. 

"It's  all  owing  to  that  bit  of  land  at  Cherry-tree  Bot- 
tom," said  Crab;  striking  the  table  with  his  horny  hand, 
to  give  greater  emphasis  to  his  position,  and  causing  all 
the  tea-things  to  give  a  simultaneous  jump  at  the  con- 
cussion. "  It's  all  owing  to  hankering  after  that  land 
which  I  had  no  business  with,  and  it  sarves  me  right, 
and  it's  a  judgment  on  me !  What  have  I  to  do  with 
land  in  this  outlandish  place  ?  If  I  hadn't  let  'em  give 
me  that  land  I  shouldn't  have  wanted  to  build  a  house 
on  it ;  and  if  I  hadn't  wanted  to  build  a  house  on  it,  I 
shouldn't  have  wanted  to  sell  the  sheep,  and  then  I 
shouldn't  have  been  plagued  with  those  confounded  dol- 
lars !  But  I'll  go  by  the  next  ship !  Betsy,  my  dear, 
write  a  letter  for  me,  there's  a  good  gal." 

"With  pleasure,"  said  Betsy,  who  was  the  old  man's 
favourite.     "  Who  to  ?" 

"  To  the  storekeeper  at  Ilobart  Town — Mr.  Stikitinem." 

"  What  an  odd  name  !" 

"  He's  a  sort  of  Dutchman,  my  dear,  that  supplies  me 
with  my  things.  I'd  write  myself,  but  living  in  this 
wretched  country  has  hurt  my  eyes,  and  I  never  could 
see  to  read  writing  easy.  I  can  make  out  big  print  very 
well  when  1  know  what  it's  about,  as  a  chapter  in  tno 
(482) 


Crab  Sells  his  Sheep.  483 

Bible  or  so.  But  I  never  did  write  much,  because  my 
band  is  hard  with  holding  the  plough,  and  a  little  thing 
like  a  pen  comes  unnatural  to  it." 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  this  handkerchief  full 
of  dollars  ?"  interrupted  my  wife.  "  I  hope,  Mr.  Crab, 
you  are  not  going  to  keep  them  here ;  it's  a  dangerous 
temptation  in  the  bush." 

''  That's  just  what  I  don't  know,"  observed  Crab,  sor- 
rowfully; "ever  since  I've  had  'em,  that's  the  very 
question  that  every  body  has  asked  me,  and  the  very  one 
I  never  could  answer.  But  trouble  enough  have  I  had 
to  get  'em,  and  I  do  believe  they're  the  last  dollars  left  in 
the  colony  ?" 

"  You  have  sold  some  sheep,  I  suppose,"  said  I ; 
"  what  did  you  get  for  'em  ?" 

''  Nothing  but  mortification — and  those  dollars.  One 
chap  wanted  three  years'  credit,  and  ho  offered  thirty 
shillings  a  head — and  then  he  offered  forty  shillings  a 
head ;  but  I  said,  '  Money  down,  that's  my  way  of  deal- 
ing; that's  the  way  I  bought  'em,  and  that's  the  way  I'll 
sell  'em.'  Then  another  Laiinceston  chap,  he  offered  to 
give  me  I  don't  know  how  many  head  of  cattle  for  'em; 
and,  says  I,  '  What  are  they,  wild  cattle  ?'  '  Of  course,' 
says  he.  '  And  where  may  they  be  ?'  says  I.  '  They're 
somewhere  near  Circular  Head,'  says  he.  'Then,'  says 
I,  '  they  may  stay  at  Circular  Head  till  their  heads  grow 
where  their  tails  are;  I'll  have  nothing  to  do  with  wild 
cattle,  that  go  scampering  about  all  over  the  island,  and 
you  never  know  where  to  find  'em  when  you  want 
'em.'  At  last  a  new  settler,  that  had  heard  that  mine 
werefine-wooled  sheep,  came  and  said  he'd  buy  four  hun- 
dred of  'em." 


484  Crab  SELLS  his  Sheep. 

'' '  How  do  you  mean  to  pay  T  said  I.     '  Bant  notes/ 
said  he,  '  of  the  Bank  of  Diemen's  Land.' 

"  I  don't  know  how  it  was — I  was  over-persuaded,  for 
he  was  a  terrible  talking  chap,  and  if  ever  any  one  had 
the  git\  of  the  gab,  it  was  he.     And  so  we  went  to  my 
sheep-run  at  the  back  of  Norfolk  Plains,  and  then  the 
dispute  began.     He  wanted  to  pick  the   ewes,  all  the 
young  'uns,  and  the  best,  though,  for  the  matter  of  that, 
they're  all  good;  but  I  said  '  No  !  that's  a  thing  I  won't 
anyways  permit.     Take  'em  as  they  run   out  of  the 
yard.'     Then  he  talked  at  me  I  suppose  for  half  an  hour, 
to  convince  me  that  the  buyer  had  a  right  to  pick  'em  3 
but  I  wasn't  going  to  be  convinced  by  the  likes  of  him, 
and  so  I  said,  '  Take  'em  or  leave  'em,  a  pound  a  head's 
my  price,  money  down,  as  they  run  out  of  the  yard.' 
Then  he  proposed  that  we  should  each  pick  one  till  he 
had  taken  his  four  hundred.     Well,  I  thought  that  was 
reasonable,   and  so   we  managed  it   that  way.     "When 
he  had  pitch  marked  'em  with  his  brand,  and  was  going 
to  drive  'em  away,  says  I —    '  Where's  the  money  ?' 
'  Give  me  a  pen  and  ink,'  said  he,  in  an  off-hand  way, 
'  and  I'll  give  you  a  check.'     '  A  check,'  says  I,  '  I 
want  none   of  your  checks — it's  the  money  I  want.' 
'  Then,'  says  he,   '  you  must  come  with  me  to  Launces- 
ton,  for  I'm  not  such  a  fool  as  to  carry  money  about  with 
me,  and  there  I'll  get  you  the  cash.'     'That's  all  very 
well,'  said  I,  '  but  in  this  country  we  never  let  the  sheep 
go  without  the  money.     So,  if  you  please,  the  four  hun- 
dred sheep  that  you've  marked  must  stay  here  till  I'm 
paid  for  ''em.'     '  Very  well,'  said  he. 

"  And  he  gave  you  the  money  at  Launceston,  I  sup- 
pose ?"  said  I. 


Is  Paid   in  Notes.  485 

"  You  bball  see.  G  ive  me  another  cup  of  tea.  Lot  me 
tell  my  story  my  own  way,  or  else  I  shall  never  ha'  done. 
So  I  went  with  him  to  Launceston,  and  we  had  a  quart 
of  port  out  of  the  cask  at  the  inn  there — it  wasn't  bad 
stuff,  but  nothing  like  the  beer  one  gets  at  a  public- 
house  at  home ;  and  then  he  wrote  a  check,  as  he  called 
it,  and  told  the  landlord  to  take  it  to  a  merchant  of  the 
town,  and  sure  enough  he  brought  back  four  hundred 
bank-notes  of  four  dollars  each,  as  he  said,  but  I  couldn't 
make  out  the  writing  on  them,  the  letters  were  so  flou- 
rished about,  but  I  thought  it  must  be  all  right,  as  the 
landlord  was  there  witnessing  it.  lie  wrote  an  order  for 
the  sheep  to  my  shepherd,  and  I  signed  it ;  he  asked  me 
what  my  christian  name  was,  and  I  said  Samuel,  and  he 
said  he  shouldn't  have  guessed  it,  but  he  dared  say  ray 
shepherd  would  understand  it,  and  so  there  I  sat  with 
the  four  hundred  bits  of  paper  before  me. 

"  The  landlord  came  in,  and  sat  down  by  me,  and  talked 
of  the  news,  and  says  he,  '  Have  you  heard  of  the  great 
failure  in  Hobart  Town  ?  That  flashy  cove  that  was 
flying  his  paper  kites  hasn't  been  able  to  raise  the  wind 
any  longer  ?'  '  Flying  paper  kites  !'  said  I ;  '  what  on 
earth  cau  a  man  want  to  fly  kites  for  ?  I  used  to  fly  a 
kite  when  I  was  a  boy.  .  .  .'  'I  see,'  said  he,  'you don't 
take.  Flying  kites  means  issuing  these  things,'  point- 
ing to  the  dollar-notes,  '  and  then  when  it  comes  to  pay- 
ing them,  its  '  no  eff"ects  !' 

"  What  the  landlord  said  had  a  terible  efiect  on  me, 
for  all  of  a  sudden  it  struck  me  I  had  parted  with  my 
four  hundred  prime  ewes  for  four  hundred  bits  of  paper 
that  wasn't  good  enough  to  light  pipes  with.  I  broke 
out  into  a  cold  sweat  directly. 

"'Landlord,'  said  I,  'can  you  take  me  to  the  mer- 


486    Has  them  Changed  to  Dollars. 

chant  that  gave  you  these  notes  ?'  '  To  be  sure  I  can/ 
said  he,  '  it's  only  a  step.'  Says  I  to  the  merchant,  '  I 
have  a  particular  reason  for  wanting  silver  instead  of 
paper  just  now.  Couldn't  you  give  me  dollars  instead 
of  these  notes  ?'  'Certainl}-/  said  he,  very  polite-like, 
'but  I  should  have  thought,'  said  he,  'you  would  find 
dollars  very  inconvenient  to  carry  about.'  '  Not  the 
least  in  the  world,'  said  I;  so  he  counted  'em  out,  and 
2)ut  'em  in  an  old  gunny-bag,  and  then  I  put  the  gunny- 
bag  in  my  handkerchief,  so  as  to  look  like  a  change  of 
clothes,  and  hoisting  them  on  a  stick  over  my  shoulder 
I  marched  back  to  the  inn.  'That's  a  large  sum  of 
money,'  said  the  landlord,  '  to  have  in  cash;  and  it's  a 
great  temptation  to  servants;  I  hope  you  are  not  a-going 
to  keep  it  at  my  inn.'  This  was  the  first  of  my  troubles. 
*  No,'  said  I,  '  I'm  going  to  take  myself  off  home — 
dollars  and  all.'  '  I  should  advise  you,'  said  he,  '  not 
to  let  anybody  know  you  have  that  sum  of  money  about 
you;  it  might  bring  you  to  mischief.'  'Never  fear,' 
eaid  I,  '  I  know  how  to  take  care  of  myself.' 

"  After  I  had  had  some  dinner,  I  set  out,  but  I  found 
the  dollars  a  greater  weight  than  I  thought  for,  so  I 
stopped  at  a  settler's  hut  about  ten  miles  from  Launces- 
ton,  and  sat  down,  intending  to  stay  the  night  there. 

'' '  What  have  you  got  here  ?'  said  he,  trying  to  lift 
up  my  load,  and  wondering  at  the  weight  of  it.  '  Why, 
they  can't  be  dollars?  and  yet  they  feel  like  'em.'  'Dol- 
lars,' said  his  wife,  '  Oh,  Lord  !  we  shall  all  be  murdered 
in  our  beds.  Pray,  Mr.  Crab,  don't  let  'em  be  here ! 
You're  sure  to  have  been  watched,  and  the  prisoners  will 
try  to  get  'em,  and  murder  us  all.  How  could  you 
think  of  bringing  'cm  here?'     'If  I  have  brought  'em 


The  T r 0 u b l k  of  11  i  c  ii  e s  .  487 

Jicre,'  said  I,  a  little  hurt-like,  '  I  can  take  them  away 
again.  I'll  go  on  to  Old  Simon's,  and  he'll  give  me 
lodging  for  the  night,  I  dare  say.' 

*'  The  husband  didn't  want  me  to  go,  and  said  it  was 
nonsense ;  but  I  saw  his  wife  wished  me  to  be  off,  so  I 
shouldered  up  my  dollars,  and  went  on  to  Old  Simon's, 
■which  wasn't  above  two  miles  off,  by  the  road  side. 

" '  Can  you  give  me  a  night's  lodging  ?'  said  I. 
'With  all  my  heart,'  said  he;  'Jem,  put  on  some  mut- 
ton-chops. What  have  you  got  here?'  said  he.  'I'll 
tell  you  at  once,'  said  I,  '  because  I  know  I  can  trust 
you  J  I've  been  selling  some  sheep,  and  these  arc  the 
dollars  I  got  for 'em.'  ' Dollars  !' said  he;  '  how  can 
you  think  of  going  about  with  such  a  heap  of  dollars  ? 
You'll  be  robbed  and  murdered  before  you  get  home. 
But  let's  put  'em  out  of  sight.' 

*' W'ith  that  he  clapped  an  empty  tripod  over  'efc,  just 
in  time,  for  his  man  came  in  a  moment  after  with  the  meat. 

"  I  had  hardly  finished  eating  a  few  chops,  when  who 
should  come  in  but  three  strange  men ;  one  was  a  ticket- 
of-leave  man,  and  the  other  two  were  Government  men 
just  arrived,  and  they  were  going  on  to  Launceston  to 
the  master  that  they  had  been  assigned  to.  Simon  gave 
me  a  look  as  much  as  to  say,  '  here's  a  mess !'  but  there 
was  no  help  for  it;  he  couldn't  well  refuse  shelter  to 
travellers  on  a  winter  night;  so  they  looked  about  to  sit 
themselves  down,  and  says  one, 

'^ '  Any  harm  in  moving  this  tripod,  master,  to  let 
this  seat  come  nearer  the  fire  ?' 

"Simon  gave  me  another  look,  and  I  saw  he  didn't 
like  it;  so  I  got  up,  and  said,  '  Take  my  chair,  I've  been 
sitting   by   the    fire   i([\    the    evening,   and    I'm    warm 


488  Crab's  uneasy  Night. 

puough;'  so  I  sat  myself  down  on  the  tripod.  It  w;isn't 
an  easy  seat,  for  the  three  prongs  stuck  up  very  awk- 
kard,  let  alone  its  being  so  low ;  but  I  thought  that  was 
the  best  thing  to  do ;  so  I  sat  there  very  uncomfortable, 
but  trying  to  look  easy. 

"  '  You  seem  to  have  rather  a  hard  seat,  master,'  said 
one  of  the  prisoners — kind-like.  'Not  a  bit/  said  I, 
for  a  thought  came  across  me  that  he  had  a  suspicion  of 
what  I  sat  there  for ;  '  not  a  bit ;  I  had  rather  stay 
where  I  am.' 

"  Then  the  others  offered  me  their  seats,  but  the  more 
they  wanted  me  to  get  up,  the  more  I  wouldn't.  '  No — 
no,'  thought  I;  'here  I'll  stick,  my  fine  fellows,  till  I've 
seen  you  safe  out  of  the  house.' 

"Old  Simon  was  very  fidgety;  he  had  only  one  spare 
bed,  which  the  prisoners  offered  to  me,  seeing  that  I  was 
respectable-looking;  but  I  wouldn't  move  from  my  tri- 
pod, although  the  ends  grieved  me  sorely  ;  and  there  I 
was  obliged  to  stay  all  night,  for  I  didn't  dare  to  move, 
like  a  hen  sitting  on  eggs ;  and  a  more  miserable  night  I 
never  passed." 

We  all  burst  out  a-laughing  at  this  narrative,  which 
made  Crab  very  indignant. 

"It's  all  very  well  to  laugh,"  said  he,  "but  how 
would  you  like  to  sit  on  a  tripod  all  night  yourself?" 

"Well,"  said  I,  "and  how  did  it  end?" 

"End!  I  thought  it  never  would  end  !  But  every 
thing  ends  at  last.  In  the  morning  the  men  went  away ; 
and  then  old  Simon  said  directly, — 

"  *■  For  heaven's  sake,  Mr.  Crab,  make  haste  home.  I 
haven't  had  a  wink  of  sleep  all  night.' 

"Says  I,  'I  won't  trouble  you  long,  you  may  depend 


Crab's  Riches  a  Burthen.        489 

on  it;'  and  I  tried  to  get  up,  but  I  couldn't.  I  was  so 
cramped  with  sitting,  that  1  was  quite  stiff,  and  the  tri- 
pod seemed  to  have  grown  to  nie." 

"  No  wonder,"  said  I,  "  but  how  did  you  manage  to 
get  on  ?" 

"  Old  Simon  was  so  wishful  to  get  rid  of  me  and  my 
load  of  dollars,  that  he  lent  me  his  bullock-cart  to  for- 
ward me  on  a  bit,  and  we  put  the  bag  of  dollars  in  the 
tripod,  and  covered  it  over  with  siftings,  to  make  it  look 
natural-like.  He  helped  me  to  lift  it  into  the  cart,  and 
his  man  drove  the  bullocks  for  about  a  dozen  miles,  and 
then  he  stopped  and  looked  at  me,  and  then  at  the  bul- 
locks. I  took  that  as  a  hint  to  get  out,  but  I  was  sadly 
puzzled  to  know  what  to  do  with  my  money,  and  the  tri- 
pod plagued  me  almost  as  bad.  He  took  hold  of  one 
side  of  the  tripod  and  I  of  the  other,  and  we  set  it  down 
by  the  roadside. 

"  Bless  me,'  said  he,  '  how  heavy  the  old  pot  has  got  I 
It  can't  be  the  siftings ;  it's  like  a  pot  of  dollars.' 

"  This  made  me  quake,  and  I  looked  in  his  face;  but 
I  saw  he  said  it  quite  innocent-like,  and  gave  it  no  more 
thought,  and  so  he  drove  back,  and  I  stood  there  for 
some  time,  by  the  side  of  my  money,  musing  a  bit,  for  I 
did'nt  well  know  what  to  do. 

"  Presently  I  heard  a  precious  noise  of  whips  cracking, 
and  I  saw  a  lot  of  cattle  a  scampering  down  the  road, 
that  the  stock-keepers  were  driving  to  the  Government 
Store  at  Launceston.  There  were  thirty  of  'em  or  more. 
On  they  came  helter-skelter,  the  stock-keepers  after 
them,  cracking  their  whips,  and  hallooing  to  them  to 
keep  on  the  road.  My  first  thought  was  to  sit  on  my 
tripod  to  guard  my  dollars,  but  before  I  could  well  know 


490    Crab   Overturned  by   Cattle. 

what  to  do,  on  they  came,  and  as  I  sat  crouched  up,  they 
did'nt  see  me  till  they  were  close  upon  me,  and  the 
hindmost  cattle  pushed  on  the  foremost,  and  the  men 
urging  them  on  behind  with  their  whips  and  shouts,  be- 
fore I  could  avoid  them,  they  were  on  me,  and  one 
heifer,  giving  a  snort  at  me  with  her  nose,  and  a  nuzzle 
with  her  head,  tumbled  me  over  and  over,  tripod  and 
all,  and  the  stock-keepers  damned  me  as  they  dashed 
by  for  putting  their  cattle  out  of  the  road,  and  there  I 
lay!"^ 

"  Upon  my  word,"  said  my  wife,  at  this  pause — all  of 
us  keeping  very  grave  feces,  for  we  did  not  dare  to  laugh 
at  the  mishaps  which  he  told  with  so  much  seriousness — 
"  you  have  been  very  unfortunate,  Mr.  Crab ;  but  how 
could  you  think  of  carrying  such  a  load  of  dollars  across 
the  country  1" 

"  How  could  I  help  it  ?"  said  Crab,  angrily;  ''  I  never 
had  to  do  so  at  home;  but  in  this  wretched  country 
there's  no  way  to  carry  anything  when  you  want  it." 

"But  why  didn't  you  take  the  bank-notes  ?  they  would 
have  been  lighter  to  carry." 

"  Catch  me  taking  their  bank-notes,  as  they  call  'em," 
replied  Crab ;  "  do  you  think  I  never  saw  a  bank-note 
before  ?  Why,  they're  no  more  like  real  bank-notes  than 
chalk  is  like  cheese!  No,  no,  nothing  like  tlie  silver 
dollars." 

"They  seem  to  have  been  a  sad  inconvenience  to  you 
on  this  occasion,"  said  T,  "these  same  dollars.  But  I 
am  anxious  to  know  how  you  managed  at  last." 

"I  couldn't  manage  'em  any  how.  So  I  was  obliged 
to  take  'em  out  of  the  tripod,  and  put  'em  over  my 
ehoulder  again,  and  then  I  did'nt  know  what  to  do  with 


S  U  R  U  O  U  X  D  K  IJ     BY     C  O  N  V  I  C  T  S  .  491 

tbo  tripod.  While  1  was  thiukiug,  I  saw  a  geDtleman 
and  lady  coming  along  the  road  in  a  gig,  with  a  roof  to 
it,  and  two  horses,  one  before  the  other,  the  same  as  we 
used  to  put  'em  in  a  cart  in  Shropshire;  but  they  came 
spanking  along  at  a  precious  rate.  When  I  called  out 
to  them  to  stop,  the  gentleman  pulled  up  sharp  at  this, 
and  says  he,  '  What's  the  matter,  my  man  ?'  Says  I, 
'  May  I  make  so  bold  as  to  ask  you,  as  you've  got  two 
horses  to  your  shay,  and  one  to  pull  along  the  other,  just 
to  leave  this  tripod  at  old  Simon's,  about  a  dozen  miles 

from  here?'     'J) n  your  tripod,'  says  he,  'and  you 

tpo !'  he  did,  upon  my  word,  although  he  was  a  gentle- 
man ;  and  the  lady  laughed  and  said,  '  Upon  my  lap,  I 
suppose !'  and  then  the  gentleman  laughed  louder,  and 
gave  the  fore-horse  a  twitch  with  his  whip,  and  the  horse 
stood  on  his  hind-legs  just  for  a  moment,  turning  round- 
iike,  and  the  lady  gave  a  little  scream,  and  oiF  they  went. 
'  Good  luck  to  ye,  and  better  manners,'  said  I,  and  I  took 
up  the  tripod  with  one  hand,  and  with  my  bag  of  dollars 
on  my  other  shoulder,  I  walked  on,  but  it  was  a  weary 
job,  and  before  I  had  gone  a  couple  of  miles  I  was  quite 
knocked  up.  I  sat  down  again  by  the  road-side,  and  I 
was  so  tired  that  I  was  almost  tempted  to  leave  the  dol- 
lars where  they  were,  or  to  bury  them  in  the  bush.  While 
I  was  looking  about  for  a  convenient  place,  I  saw  a  lot 
of  people  coming  along  the  road,  and  I  soon  perceived 
it  was  a  road-gang  of  yellow  jackets  going  to  work.  I 
was  terribly  troubled  at  this,  for  T  thought  they  might 
be  tempted  to  make  an  attack  on  me,  so  I  clapped  my 
bag  into  the  tripod  again,  and  sat  down  upon  it,  careless- 
like,  till  they  should  pass  by.  But  they  stopped  on  the 
road  just  where  I  was ;  and  the  overseer  set  them  to  work 


492  Crab  gets  a  Lift. 

round  about  me.  They  laughed  and  jeered  at  me  for 
sitting  that  fashion  on  the  iron  pot,  but  I  sat  firm ;  and 
then  the  overseer  came  up  and  asked  me  if  I  was  ill,  but 
I  did'nt  care  to  tell  him  my  secret;  when,  luckily,  there 
came  up  a  bullock-cart,  drawn  by  four  bullocks,  and  in  it 
was  a  fine  buxom  gal  a-going  to  be  married  for  a  fancy  in 
the  church  at  Hobart  Town ;  and  the  young  man  was  with 
her  in  the  cart  holding  her,  to  keep  her  steady,  because 
the  road  was  rough;  and  fine  and  merry  they  were. 
There  was  her  father  and  mother  in  another  cart  behind, 
and  seeing  me  sitting  on  my  tripod,  they  stopped  to  look 
at  me,  and  the  young  gal  laughed  fit  to  split  herself, 
though  what  there  was  to  laugh  at  I  can't  make  out,  for 
I  was  miserable  enough,  not  knowing  what  to  do  with 
those  confounded  dollars,  and  the  convicts  all  round  me, 
suspecting  something,  I'm  sure.  Well,  seeing  them  so 
jolly-like,  I  called  out  to  them  to  give  me  a  lift.  '  I 
won't  have  that  tripod  in  ray  cart,'  screamed  the  gal, 
and  then  she  laughed  louder  than  ever.  'Whatever 
have  you  got  in  it?'  said  she.  '  Hush,'  said  I,  '  I'll  tell 
you  by-and-by.'  'How  heavy  it  is!'  said  the  bullock- 
driver.  '  Its  heavy  with  the  damp,'  said  I,  not  knowing 
what  to  say;  'from  being  on  the  ground;'  and  then 
there  was  more  laughing ;  and  the  young  man  said  I  was 
a  wag !" 

''And  how  did  you  get  on  with  your  new  party?" 
said  Betsy,  with  her  handkerchief  over  her  mouth. 

"  I'll  tell  yc,  but  don't  hurry  me." 

"I  didn't  like  that  such  good-natured  folks  should 
suppose  I  carried  that  tripod  about  for  nothing ;  so  after 
we  had  got  about  a  dozen  miles  on  our  way,  I  told  'em 
that  I  had  been  selling  some  sheep,  and  that  I  was  car- 
rying home  the  dollars. 


End  of  Crab's  Story.  493 

<' '  Dollar-s !' — shrieked  the  gal.  '  Oh — heavenly  gra- 
cious !  we  shall  all  be  murdered,  and  that  road-gang  of 
prisoners  will  be  after  us  to  get  the  money.  Do,  pray,' 
said  she,  '  get  out  of  our  cart,  and  get  into  the  other  one  j' 
but  the  old  lady  was  as  afeared  as  the  young  one,  and  so 
I  was  cast  adrift  again  with  my  dollars  and  my  tripod, 
and  with  a  very  heavy  heart  I  saw  the  carts  drive  out  of 
sight ! 

"  At  last  I  was  obliged  to  leave  old  Simon's  tripod  be- 
hind, and  I  set  out  again,  till  I  reached  a  settler's  house 
just  before  you  come  to  Elizabeth  lliver.  I  had  much 
ado  to  prevail  on  'em  to  let  me  and  my  dollars  rest  there 
for  the  night,  and  the  man's  wife  was  so  frightened,  that- 
we  all  three  sat  up  all  night  watching  the  money,  she 
declaring  every  minute  that  she  heard  the  sound  of 
men's  feet  coming  to  break  into  the  house. 

"They  started  me  off  in  their  bullock-cart  nest  morn- 
ing, glad  to  get  rid  of  me,  and  that  took  me  twenty 
miles,  and  I  walked  the  remainder,  and  got  into  Jericho 
just  at  dark.  There's  a  sergeant's  party  at  that  place, 
and  I  went  into  the  guard-room,  and  asked  'em  to  let 
me  sit  there  all  night.  And  so  there  I  sat,  with  my 
bag  in  my  lap,  just  nodding,  and  afraid  to  sleep,  and 
almost  killed  by  the  weight  of  the  dollars  all  the  long 
night.  Next  morning  I  started  again  at  daybreak.  I 
thought  I  never  should  get  up  the  Den  Hill;  but  here 
I  am  at  last,  and  there  are  those  confounded  dollars. 
But  they'll  serve  to  pay  ray  passage  home,  for  in  this 
abominable  place  I'll  stay  no  longer.  Now,  Betsy,  my 
dear,  have  you  got  your  pen  ready  ?" 

"I've  been  waiting  for  you  all  the  time,"  replied 
Betsy,  "  what  shall  I  say  ?" 

"Do  you  write  what  I  tell  you,"  said  Crab. 


494  Crab's  Letter. 

"  Mr.  Stickitinem. 
"Sir, 

''  This  comes,  hoping  you  are  well,  as  I  am  at  this 
present  writing." 

"  But  you  are  not  well,"  said  Betsy,  "  I  never  saw  you 
look  so  ill  in  my  life." 

"  It's  the  way,  my  dear,"  said  Crab,  waving  his  handj 
''a  letter  must  be  begun  some  way,  and  that's  the  way 
I  always  begin  mine :  it's  like  the  coulter  that's  in  front 
of  the  plough.     Now,  go  on  and  say, 

"  This  wretched  country  has  been  the  death  of  me — 
and  I  mean  to  go  home  by  the  next  ship.  So  please  to 
takii  a  place  for  mo,  and  tell  the  captain  to  be  sure  to 
let  it  be  somewhere  near  the  axle-tree,  where  there's  no 
motion. 

"  Because  I  remember  I  was  qualmish  coming  over," 
added  Crab,  "  but  you  needn't  put  that  in  the  letter." 

"  And  what  else  shall  I  say  ?"  said  Betsy. 

"You've  said  it  all,  thank'ee,  my  dear;  but  you  may 
just  say  that  the  last  bag  of  sugar  was  wetted  out  of 
all  conscience,  and  as  gritty  as  a  gravel  cart.  And  tell 
him  that  I'll  give  forty  shillings  a  bushel  for  all  the 
grass  seed  he's  got  left;  and  to  try  to  get  me  some 
strawberry  plants  from  the  nursery  garden  at  Pitt- 
Water;  and  to  be  sure  to  see  that  my  bed  place  on 
board  the  vessel  is  long  enough,  for  I  lost  two  inches  in 
height  coming  over,  cramped  up  in  the  steerage;  and 
ask  him  to  see  if  he  can't  get  a  couple  of  brick-makers 
lent  from  the  government;  I  should  like  to  see  a  tidy 
house  put  up  in  the  bottom  yonder;  nothing  looks 
neater  than  a  nice  red  brick  house,  with  a  fish-pond  in 
front,  and  an  arbour  at  the  bottom  of  the  garden.     And 


Crab  buries  his  Riches.  495 

that  reminds  me  that  I  shall  want  a  shingle  hammer 
and  a  cask  of  shingle  nails;  and  (this  rum-and-watcr 
makes  one  very  sleepy) — and  to  see  if  the  ship  can  take 
home  my  last  year's  wool,  and  what's  the  price  of  lamb's 
wool ;  and  I  want  a  couple  of  sawyers,  and  a  carpenter, 
to  saw  the  ship  into  planks — that  is  the  logs — and — 
this  journey  has  so  knocked  me  up  that  I  can't  write 
any  more — my  dear,  write  the  rest  yourself — you  know 
what  I  want  to  say — I'll  just  finish  this  tumbler,  and 
then  I'll  go  to  bed." 

''  But  what  will  you  do  with  these  dollars  ?"  said  my 
wife. 

"  The  dollars,"  said  Crab,  his  intellects  worn  out  by 
the  fatigue  of  his  journey,  and  confused  with  the  three 
tumblers  of  rum-and-water  which  he  had  unconsciously 
indulged  in,  "put  'em — put  'cm — in  the  tripod." 

The  next  day  Crab  got  up  with  the  early  light,  and 
to  get  rid  of  the  anxiety  of  having  these  unfortuiiute 
dollars  in  the  house,  he  buried  them  with  great  care 
and  secrecy  in  the  bush ;  but  the  very  same  day  the 
prisoner  whom  I  have  before  mentioned  as  having  been 
sentenced  to  one  hundred  lashes,  and  pardoned,  pitched 
upon  the  plant,  and  observing  that  the  ground  had 
lately  been  disturbed  in  an  out-of-the-way  place,  he  dug 
up  the  loose  earth  with  a  stake,  and  finding  the  gunny- 
bag  containing  the  dollars,  he  carried  it,  just  as  it  was, 
to  the  magistrate's  house.  An  inquiry  having  been 
made,  which  set  the  whole  district  a-talking,  the  news 
reached  us,  and  the  bag  of  dollars  was  duly  restored  to 
Crab,  who  found  the  number  of  the  dollars  correct. 

For  this  act  of  honesty  the  magistrate  recommended 
the  prisoner  for  a  free  pardon,  which  in  due  course  he 


496    Crab's  Opinion  or  Currenot, 

received,  and  he  is  now  a  flourisliing  settler.  But  the 
bag  of  dollars  still  remained  to  perplex  the  distracted 
Crab ;  and  as  the  existence  of  this  amount  of  silver  bul- 
lion was  now  the  talk  of  the  whole  district,  we  were 
obliged  to  send  it  to  Hobart  Town,  escorted  by  Crab 
and  two  constables. 

"Silver  dollars,"  said  Crab,  "are  a  very  fine  thing  to 
talk  about,  and  to  wish  for,  but  they're  very  troublesome 
to  carry  about,  and  still  more  dangerous  to  keep  by  you. 
If  one  could  only  trust  those  fellows  at  the  Bank/'  said 
he,  "  there's  nothing  like  bank-notes  after  all." 


(CimptH  J^nrtt|-tl]ir&. 

Pourteen  years  pass  bj' — The  Emigrant's  Wealth — A  Letter  Srom 
the  Gypsey's  daughter — Death  of  Crab. 

It  was  fourteen  years  after  the  occurrences  which  I 
have  related  in  my  preceding  memoirs,  that  I  was  sit- 
ting in  my  garden,  under  a  splendid  mimosa  tree  which 
we  had  cherished  for  many  years  as  a  favourite  spot — 
enjoying  the  calm  of  a  peaceful  evening. 

I  had  for  several  years  past  resigned  the  active  manage- 
ment of  my  farms,  with  my  flocks  and  herds,  to  my  eldest 
son,  who,  with  his  wife  and  family,  resided  with  me  in 
our  large  stone  house,  after  the  old  patriarchal  custom. 
My  daughter  Betsy,  who  had  married  George  Beresford 
in  1827,  had  five  children,  and  resided  at  Cherry-tree 
Bottom,  in  a  comfortable  cottage,  of  which  Crab,  now 
very  far  advanced  in  years,  and  who  for  some  time  past 
had  grown  very  feeble,  was  the  dissatisfied  owner.  Be- 
resford, the  elder,  had  married  Lucy  Moss,  in  1824,  and 
they  now  resided  on  the  banks  of  the  Shannon  lliver, 
surrounded  by  a  numerous  family. 

It  was  the  close  of  the  summer  season,  in  the  month 
of  March,  and  the  face  of  the  country  had  for  some 
■weeks  assumed  that  brown  autumnal  tint  which  is  the 
prevailing  hue  of  the  fields  and  foliage  for  the  greater 
part  of  the  year,  in  Van  Diemen's  Land.  Two  tiny 
urchins,  brother  and  sister,  were  playing  near  me  on  a 
32  (497) 


498         Fourteen  Years  Later. 

plot  of  English  grass,  whose  lively  green,  and  thick, 
close  sward,  contrasted  pleasingly  with  the  brown,  coarse 
tufts  of  the  native  plains  beyond.  Rather  too  thickly 
clustered,  in  a  space  that  was  covered  with  fruits  and 
flowers,  were  apple,  pear,  and  peach  trees;  the  former 
bearing  the  ruddy  tint  of  the  English  fruit,  and  the 
latter  in  its  full  ripeness.  A  fine  boy  of  eight  years  of 
age  was  coaxing  a  young  kangaroo  with  sugar,  and  a 
white  cockatoo,  raising  up  his  yellow-feathered  tuft, 
screamed  and  chattered  on  the  walk,  to  attract  the  notice 
of  his  playfellows.  In  the  park-like  plain  below  were 
grazing  some  of  the  dairy  cows,  with  two  or  three  horses, 
and  a  small  pet  flock  of  merino  sheep. 

I  was  attentively  reading  a  volume  of  a  work  which  I 
had  lately  received  from  England,  for  being  now  able  to 
indulge  in  my  early  taste  for  books,  I  had  accumulated 
about  twelve  hundred  volumes  in  a  small  library,  which 
formed  a  room,  looking  on  the  river,  especially  devoted 
to  my  own  serious  contemplations  ;  but  the  gambols  of 
my  grandchildren  interrupted  me  continually. 

The  perusal  of  my  book  had  produced  in  me  that  feel- 
ing of  melancholy  which  sometimes  takes  possession  of 
one's  mind  without  any  definable  cause.  Indeed,  of  all 
men,  I  was  one  of  those  the  least  inclined  to  melancholy 
thoughts,  and  God  had  been  pleased  to  bless  me  with 
such  prosperity  and  increase,  that  if  tears  rose  in  my 
eyes  it  must  have  been  from  the  very  fulness  of  my 
satisfaction. 

I  laid  down  my  book,  and  was  revolving,  as  I  sat,  the 
many  scenes  of  my  busy  and  adventurous  life,  when  my 
dear  wife,  the  companion  of  my  labours  and  the  sharer 
of  my  prosperity,  appeared  at  the  end  of  the  walk,  with 


Gypsey's  Daughter.  499 

a  letter  in  her  hand,  and  supporting  on  her  arm  her  aged 
mother,  who,  with  the  assistance  of  a  staff,  was  still 
able,  though  far  advanced  beyond  the  ordinary  span  of 
human  life,  to  take  her  accustomed  walks  in  the  garden. 
My  dear  Mary  was  changed  a  little  in  her  looks,  but  her 
heart  was  still  as  warm  and  as  affectionate  as  ever.  She 
wore  her  own  gray  hair,  disdaining  the  artifice  of  con- 
ventional disguise,  and  boasting  that  she  was  prouder 
of  being  the  grandmother  of  such  a  family  than  of  all 
the  brown  and  clustering  curls  of  her  early  youth.  I 
could  tell  by  her  countenance  that  she  had  some  agree- 
able news  to  communicate  as  she  moved  towards  me. 
She  gave  me  the  letter  with  a  smile  ;  it  bore  the  mark 
of  England,  and  on  its  seal  was  the  single  word  "  Geor- 
giana." 

I  ought  to  say  here,  that  after  the  Gypsey's  daughter 
had  been  received  in  my  family,  immediate  steps  were 
taken  by  me  and  the  magistrate  for  securing  her  legal 
rights  in  England.  Various  letters  passed,  and  at  the 
end  of  four  years  an  agent,  duly  empowered  by  her  legal 
guardians,  arrived  in  the  colony  to  take  charge  of  her 
on  her  passage  home.  Her  uncle,  John  Shirley,  he  in- 
formed us,  had  obtained  possession  of  the  estates  as  next 
heir;  but  the  elder  brother,  William,  had  made  a  will, 
by  which  he  devised  the  whole  of  his  estates  and  property 
to  trustees  for  the  benefit  of  George  Shirley,  should  he 
ever  return  to  England,  or  to  his  children.  It  was  im- 
possible to  dispute  the  will,  but  the  uncle  denied  the 
marriage  and  the  identity  of  the  child.  These  points 
were  easily  proved  in  the  colony ;  but,  as  the  trustees  in 
England  were  desirous  of  her  presence  at  home  for  their 
greater  satisfaction,  and  for  the  better  prosecution  of  her 


500   She  Returns  to  England, 

cause,  we  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  of  the  return 
of  a  friend  and  his  wife  to  the  mother  country  to  place 
her  under  female  care,  and,  accompanied  by  the  agent, 
she  set  sail  in  1828.  She  was  then  eleven  years  of  age, 
and  one  of  the  most  beautiful  little  girls  I  ever  saw,  and 
beginning  to  be  highly  accomplished,  for  our  governess 
had  done  her  duty  well,  and  the  child  had  amply  replied 
to  the  unmeasured  attention  which  she  bestowed  on  her. 

I  remember  when  I  told  my  old  friend,  the  magis- 
trate, of  her  intended  departure,  and  expressed  my  satis- 
faction that  she  would  meet  with  no  troubles  in  Eng- 
land, like  those  to  which  she  had  been  exposed  from  the 
machinations  of  her  uncle,  and  from  the  caprice  of  the 
savages  in  this  country,  my  worthy  and  facetious  friend 
was  pleased  to  observe  that, 

"  Bad  as  that  was  she  might  be  worse." 

"  Why,  what  can  they  do  worse  with  her  ?"  said  I. 

"Why,"  replied  my  friend,  "they  can  put  her  in 
Chancery  I" 

My  children,  who  had  become  attached  to  their  aiFec- 
tionate  playmate,  were  very  sad,  I  remember,  at  this 
sort  of  evil  prognostication  on  the  part  of  my  friend, 
thinking  that  to  be  put  in  Chancery  was  some  terrible 
disaster;  and  they  conjured  up  all  sorts  of  horrid  ideas 
about  a  prison,  and  looking  through  the  bars  ;  but  when 
I  explained  to  them  that  the  Court  of  Chancery  was  a 
place  of  refuge,  curiously  and  ingeniously  contrived  for 
the  redress  of  wrongs,  and  for  the  protection  of  the  or- 
jihan ;  and  that  in  twenty  or  thirty  years,  or,  at  least,  in 
the  course  of  half  a  century,  the  rights  of  their  young 
friend  would  be  in  a  fair  progress  of  restoration,  as 
shortly  after  that  period  some  succeeding  Lord  Chan- 


A  Letter  from  Her!  501 

ccllor  would  probably  intimate  when  her  case  might  be 
mentioned  at  some  future  time,  with  a  view  to  its  being 
begun  to  be  heard,  they  were  silenced;  although,  I  am 
inclined  to  think,  not  quite  satisfied  with  my  well-meant 
explanation. 

We  had  received  many  letters  from  Miss  Shirley 
since  her  arrival  in  England,  and  the  first  news  that  wo 
bad  of  her  was  that  she  was  in  Chancery,  which  spread 
a  gloom  over  my  family,  that  was  cleared  up,  however, 
when  we  were  informed  that  she  did  not  sufier  in  her 
health  in  consequence,  and  that  in  the  meantime  her 
guardians  supplied  all  her  wants  with  a  liberal  hand ; 
for  her  case  was  so  plain  that  no  human  being  had  any 
doubt  of  the  success  of  her  cause,  excepting,  of  course, 
the  high  functionary  who  had  to  decide  on  it.  We  were 
very  anxious,  therefore,  to  hear  of  the  progress  of  our 
young  friend,  and  it  was  with  lively  interest  that  I 
opened  the  letter,  and  read  aloud  its  contents.  It  was 
addressed  to  my  wife  in  the  inside,  and  ran  thus : — 

"  Mt  dearest  Mrs.  Thornley,  • 
"  My  previous  letters  will  have  taught  you  to  expect 
that  the  most  important  event  of  my  life  would  soon 
take  place,  and  that  I  should  again  change  ray  name; 
but  the  change,  I  assure  you,  has  produced  no  altera- 
tion in  the  heart,  towards  you  and  yours,  of  your  grate- 
ful Gcorgiana.  I  may  now  break  through  the  reserve 
which  I  have  hitherto  maintained  in  respect  to  some 
points  relating  to  my  marriage. 

"  My  first  acquaintance  with  my  husband  began  at 
Milan,  whither  my  guardian  had  taken  me  two  years  ago 
in  the  course  of  our  travels  through  Italy.     We  had 


502  The  News  in   it. 

gone  to  the  opera  on  the  evening  of  our  arrival,  without 
being  aware  of  the  piece  that  was  to  be  performed,  or  not 
thinking  of  its  application  to  myself.  The  opera  passed 
off  very  well,  but  the  next  piece  was  the  '  Gypsey.'  The 
scene  brought  bach  to  my  recollection  my  early  sorrows 
in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and  by  one  of  those  strange  coin- 
cidences which  sometimes  take  place  to  our  wonder  in 
real  life,  the  dark  Italian  eyes  of  one  of  the  performers 
brought  back  so  vivedly  to  my  recollection  the  look  of 
my  poor  father  when  he  caressed  me  shortly  before  his 
melancholy  fate,  that  I  became  troubled,  and  a  tide  of 
painful  thoughts  rushing  in  upon  me,  I  fainted.  A 
gentleman — young — and  handsome,  of  course,  assisted  my 
■guardian  to  convey  me  to  our  carriage,  and  such  assist- 
ance accepted  was  a  sufficient  introduction  for  the  nest 
day.  Our  intimacy  increased,  and  although  he  was 
eight  years  older  than  I,  he  became  attached  to  me :  but 
1  struggled  hard  to  prevent  my  heart  from  becoming  en- 
gaged, fearful  that,  from  his  rank  and  connections,  he 
might  despise  me  when  he  came  to  learn  the  secret  of 
the  Gypsey's  daughter.  This  continued  for  the  two 
years  that  we  remained  abroad,  when,  having  learned  to 
appreciate  his  generous  character,  I  determined  to  re- 
veal to  him  my  terrible  secret.  He  declared  that  he 
did  not  love  me  less,  and  esteemed  me  more  for  my  con- 
fidence and  sincerity.  Shortly  after  this  he  quitted  our 
society  under  the  plea  of  his  affairs  in  England  requir- 
ing his  presence  ',  and  on  our  return  home  he  presented 
to  me  a  packet  of  papers,  and  immediately  retired.  I 
was  alarmed  at  this  conduct,  and  instantly  opened  the 
packet,  when  I  found  documents  completely  exculpating 
my  dear   father   from  any  share  in   the  death  of  the 


She  is  3Iarried,  503 

game-keeper,  for  bis  supposed  participation  in  which 
lie  had  been  condemned  to  banishment.  That  ob- 
stacle— which  indeed  existed  only  on  my  part — being 
removed — with  the  consent  of  my  guardians,  I  resigned 
my  future  destiny  to  his  care,  and  I  now  write  to  you 
as  his  happy  wife. 

"  When  I  reflect  on  my  present  happiness,  my  dearest 
second  mother,  I  cannot  but  feel  my  large  debt  of  grati- 
tude for  your  fostering  care  of  the  forlorn  Gypsey's 
daughter  j  and  how  can  I  repay  you  for  all  your  kind- 
ness, and  for  the  kindness  of  your  children  to  me  ? 
Pray  remember  me  to  them  all;  to  the  grave  William, 
the  merry  Betsy,  or  rather  I  should  call  her  Mrs.. 
George  Beresford ;  to  the  good-natured  Edward,  and  is 
he  still  called  'Sporting  Ned?'  to  Mary,  and  to  Lucy, 
and  though  last  not  least,  to  my  dearest  Ellen,  who 
used  to  romp  with  me;  nor  must  I  forget  my  dear  old 
governess,  Mrs.  Eamsay,  who  I  hope  continues  in  your 
family,  and  who  was  so  kind  and  good  to  the  orphan 
wanderer.  I  am  almost  tempted  to  wish  that  you  were 
very  poor  that  I  might  hav^  the  delight  of  sharing  with 
you  what  we  possess,  for  we  arc  very  rich ;  but  your 
flocks  and  herd^  I  hear  almost  cover  the  island,  and 
with  youriarge  estates,  your  carriages,  and  your  hprses, 
and  your  baronial  house,  and  all  your  patriarchal  abun- 
dance, I  am  at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  send  out  to  you. 
I  wish  you  could  convey  your  fifteen  thousand  acres  of 
land  to  England.  And  only  think  of  that  acre  of  land 
which  Mr.  Thoruley  bought  in  Ilobart-Town  some  years 
ago  turning  out  such  a  valuable  property ;  but  of  course 
as  land  is  wanted  in  a  town  for  building  houses  on  as. 
the  inhabitants  increase,  every  square  foot,  as  my  hus- 
Band  says,  becomes  valuable. 


504  And  sends  Presents. 

"  My  dear  husband  has  sent  out  two  beautiful  horses 
for  Mr.  Thornley,  and  some  curious  cattle  and  Saxon 
sheep  for  William ;  and  I  have  sent  a  grand  piano- 
forte with  the  latest  improvement  for  Mary,  which  will 
stand  very  nicely  at  the  end  of  your  large  room  ;  and  a 
harp  for  Ellen,  with  quantities  of  music.  I  have  also  to 
request  Edward  to  accept  the  choicest  double-barrel 
gun,  with  all  sorts  of  apparatus  which  I  don't  understand, 
that  can  be  purchased  in  London,  and  my  husband  has 
taken  particular  pains  in  selecting  it.  I  was  at  a  loss  to 
know  what  remembrance  to  send  to  Lucy,  but  I  have 
been  fortunate  enough  to  find  a  beautiful  cabinet  at  a 
curiosity  shop,  made  at  Vienna  for  the  empress  Maria 
Louisa  of  France,  with  which  I  think  she  will  be  pleased, 
as  it  accords  with  the  splendour  of  her  romantic  dispo- 
sition. I  have  sent  also  a  self-acting  organ  for  Betsy, 
that  she  may  have  music,  as  she  used  to  say  she  should 
like,  without  the  trouble  of  playing.  Don't  you  remem- 
ber she  used  to  say  in  her  merry  way,  she  would  as  soon 
grind  the  old  portable  corn-mill  as  a  hand-organ?  And 
now,  what  have  I  to  say  more  ?  Oh  !  it  is  to  ask  you 
to  send  us  another  kangaroo,  and  some  of  the  pretty 
Rosina  parrots  that  we  made  such  pets  of 

"  Mr.  John  Shirley  is  living  abroad,  and  my  affairs 
are  still  in  Chancery ;  but  as  we  are  rich  enough,  we 
have  the  satisfaction,  my  husband  says,  of  considering 
that  the  estates  will  some  day  come  to  our  great  grand- 
children Mr.  Shirley  is  inclined,  I  understand,  to  com- 
promise the  matter  by  his  being  allowed  a  small  annuity 
for  life  of  three  thousand  a  year,  which  would  be  nothing 
for  the  property  to  pay,  and  our  solicitors  advise  us  to 
accept  it;  but  my  husband  will  not  forgive  him  for  en- 


,  H  E  R  G  0  0  D  W  I  s  ri  E  s  .  505 

deavouring  to  steal  me  away  as  he  did,  and  exposing  me 
to  the  risk  of  being  killed  aud  eaten  by  the  natives,  in 
order  to  marry  me  to  his  son.  My  husband  says  he 
should  have  liked  to  know  Musqueeto,  for  he  was  a  fine 
fellow  for  saving  my  life,  and  he  says  it  was  a  shame  to 
hang  him ;  but  the  atrocities  and  murders  that  he  com- 
mitted are  certainly  very  shocking.  And  now,  my  dear 
Mrs.  Thornley,  and  my  dear  friends,  I  bid  you  for  the 
present  adieu;  wishing  you  a  continuance  of  your  present 
prosperity  and  happiness.  And  that  you  may  long  live 
to  enjoy  the  many  delights^of  children,  friends,  fortune, 
and  independence,  with  which  Providence  has  blessed 
you,  is  the  prayer  of  your  ever  affectionate  and  grateful 

"  Georgian  A. 

**  Postscript. — I  declare  I  had  forgotten  to  ask  after 
my  old  friend  Mr.  Crab.  lie  was  very  old,  and  getting 
infirm,  I  thought,  when  I  left  the  country.  Is  he  still 
alive  ?  and  does  he  still  go  on  grumbling  and  declaring 
that  he  will  leave  the  *  horrid,  wretched  country  by  the 
very  next  ship  V     Again, 

"  Yours, 

"  Georgy." 

"  Kind,  good-hearted  old  man  !"  said  I.  "  He  will 
be  glad  to  hear  that  the  little  girl,  whom  he  was  so  fond 
of,  has  not  forgotten  her  old  friend ;  but  I  fear,  from 
the  account  we  received  of  him  last  night,  that  he 
will  not  be  in  this  world  long,  to  receive  such  remem- 
brances." 

As  I  spoke,  George  Beresford  arrived  on  horseback, 
and  in  haste,  to  inform  us  that  the  symptoms  which  had 


50G      Appearance    of  Crab's  Farm. 

txhibited  theraselves  the  evening  before,  had  become 
more  alarming,  and  that  Betsy  wished  me  to  come  over 
immediately.  I  desired  a  horse  to  be  saddled  instantly, 
and  leaving  my  wife  to  follow  in  the  carriage,  I  made 
the  best  of  my  way  with  my  son-in-law  to  Cherry-tree 
Bottom. 

On  our  way  we  called  at  the  surgeon's,  and  mounting 
him  on  a  led  horse,  which  my  groom  had  brought  with 
him  for  the  purpose,  he  accompanied  us  to  see  if  art 
could  do  anything  to  prolong  the  life  of  my  old  friend. 

"  I  fear,"  said  the  surgeoa,  "  that  all  art  is  useless  in 
this  case ;  he  is  dying  of  sheer  old  age.  How  old  really 
is  he  ?" 

"  We  don't  exactly  know,"  said  I ;  "he  owns  to  eighty 
two,  but  from  his  remembrance  of  past  events  in  Eng- 
land,  we  think  he  must  be  much,  older." 

We  soon  arrived  at  Cherry-tree  Bottom,  which  wns 
situated  in  a  little  hollow,  embosomed  among  the  sur- 
rounding hills.  Crab  had  made  it  the  very  model  of  an 
English  farm,  and  the  rick-yard  contained,  in  addition 
to  several  imposing  stacks  of  wheat  thatched  to  a  nicety, 
and  kept  untouched,  "because,"  as  he  said,  "they  made 
a  farm-house  look  warm  and  homelike,"  a  tolerable  stack 
of  hay  made  from  native  grass.  The  garden  presented 
the  autumnal  maturity  of  luxuriance,  which  is  so  strik- 
ing in  this  country,  and  an  ample  orchard  of  cherry- 
trees  proclaimed  that  the  name  of  the  favoured  spot  waa 
now  deservedly  bestowed. 

On  a  stubble-field,  enclosed  within  a  hawthorn-hedge, 
two  horses  in  a  line  were  ploughing,  with  a  Shropshire 
plough ;  Crab  holding  in  abomination  the  colonial  prac- 
tice of  employing  bullocks  in  ploughs  and  carts.     With- 


His   Alarming  Illness.  507 

in  sight  of  the  house,  a  pond  had  with  much  labour  been 
excavated  to  receive  the  waters  of  a  little  rivulet  that 
took  its  source  from  a  distant  tier  of  hills.  Indisputable 
English  geese  and  ducks  disported  themselves  in  this 
capacious  reservoir,  gladdening  the  old  man's  eyes  with 
the  picture  of  his  early  youth.  But  those  cj'es  were 
now  about  to  close;  and  with  a  heaviness  of  heart  which 
I  did  not  attempt  to  suppress,  I  approached  the  door 
of  my  ancient  friend's  dwelling. 

We  found  the  old  man  seated  in  an  easy  chair,  his 
silvery  white  hair  hanging  on  his  shoulders,  by  an  open 
window,  having  a  view  at  the  same  time  of  his  wheat- 
stacks,  his  duck-pond,  and  his  twelve-acre  wheat  field, 
at  which  his  servants  were  now  at  work-.  He  had  been  com- 
plaining, Betsy  told  us,  of  the  mistiness  of  the  atmos- 
phere, although  the  air  was  clear  and  pure — I  well  knew 
what  this  mistiness  meant. 

"  Here's  father  coming  to  see  you,"  said  Betsy,  rais- 
ing her  voice  a  little,  for  a  little  deafness  had  been  for 
some  time  one  of  the  old  man's  infirmities. 

"  Thornloy,  I'm  glad  to  see  you.  Where  Are  you  ? 
come  closer;  the  air  is  very  dim  :  I  suppose  its  the  na- 
tives that  have  fired  the  country,  and  it's  all  smoke — as 
it  always  is  in  this  place !" 

"  There  are  no  natives  now,"  said  Betsy,  "  to  fire 
the  country ;  they  have  all  been  removed  this  many 
years." 

''  Have  they  ?  Ah  !  I  remember  something  about 
those  sweeping  expeditions,  and  what  fun  it  was  1 
making  a  line  across  the  country,  and  the  natives  behind 
us  all  the  while  wondering  wliat  we  were  after  !" 

"  How  do  you  feel,  my  dear  friend  ?"  said  I,  sooth- 
ingly. 


508         Crab's  End   Approaches. 

"  Very  weak — very  weak  indeed.  You  see,  Thornley, 
this  wretched  country  has  killed  me  at  last.  I  always 
eaid  it  would,  but  you  never  would  believe  me.  But 
it  serves  me  right — yes,  quite  right  j  I  ought  to  have 
left  it  long  ago.  It  was  those  hops  that  deluded  me 
on." 

''  You  have  shown  the  colonists  how  to  grow  hops," 
said  I,  wishing  to  please  him  by  a  little  praise  which 
he  well  deserved. 

''  Ah  !  haven't  I  ?  And  taught  them  how  to  make 
beer  too  !  Betsy,  my  dear,  tell  them  to  get  your  father 
a  jug  of  that  last  tap.  Let  me  taste  it."  They  put  the 
cup  to  his  lips.  "  How's  this  ?  it  tastes  oddly  !  Get 
some  more  in  another  jug.  Thornley  musn't  come  to 
my  house,  and  not  have  a  glass  of  ale  !  But  I  shall  grow 
no  more  hops,  and  drink  no  more  of  my  own  home- 
brewed ale !" 

"My  dear  friend,"  said  I  ^'you  have  lived  a  longer 
life  than  is  ordinarily  the  lot  of  man  ;  and  your  latter 
years  have  been  passed  in  a  state  of  prosperity  far  be- 
yond your  early  expectations.  Let  us  hope  that  the 
Great  Being  who  has  blessed  the  latter  part  of  your 
career  with  so  much  wealth  and  ease,  will  regard  all 
your  complainings  in  this  life  with  an  indulgent  eye ; 
and  that  your  life  hereafter  may  be  such  as  he  h^s 
promised  to  those  who  keep  his  word,  and  trust  in  him." 
"  I  don't  know,"  said  Crab — in  a  slow  and  feeble 
voice,  his  mind  beginning  to  wander — "  that  I  have  done 
much  amiss — except  the  coming  to  this  wretched  coun- 
try, and  the  staying  in  it,  which  is  worse ;  but  I'll  go 
home  by  the  next  ship.  Not  a  ,  drop  of  beer  to  be  had 
in  the  country  for  love  or  money  !     What's  the  use  of  a 


II  I  S    ]M  1  N  I)    W  ANDERS.  509 

pul)lic-linu8c  if  there's  no  boor  in  it  ?  Half-a-gninea 
for  a  bottle  of  stout !  It's  shameful !  Did  you  ever  8ee 
a  chap  plough  a  field  that  way  before  ?  Not  know  what 
lying  fallow  means  !  You're  a  cockney  !  I  don't  wish 
to  be  uncivil — but  you're  a  cockney  !  I  say  you're  a 
cockney?" 

'<  His  mind  is  wandering,"  s^aid  the  benevolent  clcrg)'- 
man  attached  to  the  Clyde  church  ;  <'  but  his  life  has  been 
so  innocent,  and  all  his  intentions  so  good,  that  if  ever 
spirit  ascended  to  the  presence  of  its  Maker  with  hope 
and  trust,  such  may  be  the  reliance  of  this  single-hearted 
old  man  ?" 

My  wife  now  arrived;  but  it  was  with  difficulty  that 
our  dying  friend  could  be  made  to  recognise  her;  and 
when  he  did,  his  waning  intellects  referred  to  times  and 
scenes  foreign  to  the  present. 

"  Mrs.  Thornley,"  said  he,  in  slow  and  feeble  accents, 
"  your  poor  husband  has  been  killed  by  the  natives ;  but 
we  must  bear  it — we  must  bear  it.  To  roast  him  alive; 
The  savages  !  But  we'll  all  leave  the  country.  I'm 
going  to  leave  the  country.     Where's  Betsy  ?" 

Betsy  took  hold  of  the  old  man's  hand,  and  spoke  to 

TjjjY*  ijc  sj:  :(:  :tc  >K  3H 

The  clergyman  now  asked  him  if  there  was  anything 
that  he  wished  to  say,  anything  that  he  wished  to  have 
done? 

The  questions  of  the  divine  roused  the  old  man  to  a 
consciousness  of  his  present  state,  and  recalled  his  mind 
from  its  feeble  wanderings.  But  his  voice  became 
weaker  and  weaker,  and  his  pulse  grew  more  feeble  in 
its  flutterings — and  it  was  with  difficulty  that  we  could 
make  out  the  meaning  of  what  he  uttered. 


510  Cbab's  Death. 

"I  know,"  he  said,  in  a  whisper  scarcely  articulate, — 
'^  that — we — must — all  die  I — but — I — wanted  to  see 
how  that  wheat  turned  out — in — the — new — field. 
George  —  never  —  plough  with  — oxen — and — don't — 
shoot — the  bull,  as  you  did — the — other  one.  I — 
am — going — I — am — going.    Betsy — hold — my — hand. 

"What  do  I  feel?     Betsy— I  am— stifling! 1 — I — 

I — can't  breathe my  breath Thornley — I  am — 

going  —  at  last — out  —  of  this  —  wretch  — wretch-ed — 
country — home — at — last." 

And  so  he  died. 

There  was  not  a  dry  eye  in  the  room.  For  my  own 
part,  I  sobbed  like  a  child ;  although  my  dear  old  friend 
had  died  full  of  years  and  prosperity,  and  in  peace  and 
hope.  But  he  was  my  ancient  friend,  my  earliest  com- 
panion in  the  colony,  and  I  loved  him  for  the  very  whims 
and  failings  for  which  others  laughed  at  him. 

''  That  was  one  of  the  best  hearts  in  one  of  the  rough- 
est husks  that  ever  I  had  to  deal  with,"  said  the  surgeon. 
And  so  thought  we  all,  but  for  some  time  no  one  spoke, 
and  I  retired  with  a  sad  heart  to  the  banks  of  the  Clyde. 

We  buried  our  old  friend  in  the  churchyard  which 
had  been  consecrated  with  the  church  by  the  Bishop  of 
Australia.  Over  his  grave  I  placed  a  modest  tablet, 
with  this  simple  inscription  : — 

HERE  LIE   THE  MOIITAL  REMAINS 

or 

SAMUEL  CRAB 

AN 

ENGLISH    FARMER, 
AGED    86. 


CljflptBr  /nrlij-fnurtji. 

CONCLUSION. 

I-  HAVE  but  little  more  to  add  to  these  memoirs. 
The  recent  events  in  the  colony  are  too  well  known  to 
render  it  necessary  for  me  to  enter  into  a  description  of 
them. 

With  respect  to  my  own  individual  case,  I  may  fairly 
take  it  as  an  instance  of  what  may  be  done  by  industry, 
frugality,  and  perseverance;  and  of  the  advantages  to 
be  derived  from  settling  in  a  colony,  in  its  early  stage, 
when  its  lands  are  unoccupied  and  almost  worthless,  and 
easy,  therefore,  to  be  obtjiined ;  but  which,  in  the  pro- 
gress of  years,  and  by  increase  of  inhabitants,  grow 
into  valuable  estates. 

I  am  now  declining  in  years,  but  my  health  is  strong 
and  firm,  and  I  have  never  had  a  day's  illness  since  I 
have  been  in  the  colony. 

My  old  friend,  the  magistrate,  who  is  now  grown  very 
rich  and  very  fat,  has  been  for  some  months  past  curiously 
inquiring  into  the  nature  of  my  occupations,  seeing  me 
always  so  busily  employed  in  writing  without  anyosten- 
Bible  reason  for  such  a  labour.  I  showed  the  pile  of 
manuscript  to  him  the  other  day,  which  had  accumu- 
lated to  a  formidable  heap,  and  told  him,  in  confidence, 
what  I  had  been  about. 

"And  what  are  you  a  going  to  do  with  it?"  said  he, 

(511) 


512  Conclusion. 

"  why  tbere  is  more  tlian  enough  to  make  three  volumes 
in  print." 

"  If  I  thought  the  printing  of  it  would  be  useful,"  said 
T,  "  although  I  did  not  begin  it  with  that  intention,  I 
would  not  object  to  its  being  published."  And  there- 
upon I  oifered  to  read  to  him  the  whole  of  the  manu- 
Bcript  from  the  beginning  to  the  end.  I  thought  my 
worthy  friend  changed  countenance  at  this  offer,  and 
not  liking  to  give  me  so  much  trouble,  I  suppose,  he 
replied : — 

"  For  Heaven's  sake  don't  think  of  such  a  thing: — 
I'll  take  it  all  for  granted.  But  what  is  it  all  about  ? 
Have  you  been  writing  a  history  of  the  island?" 

"  The  island,"  I  replied,  "  or  rather  the  colony,  is  too 
young  as  yet  to  have  a  history  to  write  about.  I  have 
been  describing,"  I  continued,  "  minutely,  and  from 
my  own  experience,  the  individual  process  of  emigration. 
And  I  have  endeavoured,"  I  added,  "to  give  such  de- 
scriptions of  the  colony,  from  my  own  observations,  as 
will  enable  those  who  may  read  them  to  form  a  tolerably 
correct  idea  of  what  Van  Diemen's  Land  really  is;  and 
to  teach  those  who  have  a  mind  to  emigrate,  how  to  set 
about  it." 

"  Well,"  my  excellent  friend  was  pleased  to  say,  "you 
have  shut  yourself  up  for  a  long  time ;  I  hope  you  have 
finished  your  task  now  ?  You  don't  intend  to  write  any 
more  of  your  adventures  ?" 

"  No !"  said  I ; — "Here  ends  The  Settler's  Jour- 
nal." 


THE   END. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

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This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


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